No Malayalam releases in Bangalore due to piracy

Last year, after the Kerala Anti-piracy Cell and producers' association filed a case against a theatre in Bangalore for allowing piracy, they arrested the culprits and ensured the proprietor and manager of the theatre were taken to task. However, the crime seems to have re-emerged and the anti-piracy cell in Kerala has now taken much stronger action. They've decided not to release any Malayalam films in Karnataka for a month.

"We've taken this decision after meeting with the Anti-piracy Cell and producers' association. By doing this, the root causes of piracy will be taught a lesson," says Anil V Thomas, the General Secretary of the Kerala Film Chamber of Commerce. The decision has not been implemented yet. Ask Abdul Azeez, convener of the Anti-piracy Cell and producers' association, why Bangalore, and he says, "In the last 3-4 months, we've seen that Malayalam films are recorded in one theatre in Bangalore. They record the film in the theatre, and sell the CDs of the film within three days of its release and upload it on the internet."

Milan Jaleel, who produced the Mohanlal-starrer Run Baby Run, says, "Producers have lost 20-30% of our revenue because of piracy. So now, we're tracing the movies that have been uploaded on the internet and ensuring that they are deleted. However, Malayalam movies that are uploaded on international websites cannot be deleted as uploading new releases is not a crime there," he says.

Actress Parvathi Menon, who has acted in Malayalam, Kannada and Telugu films, says the decision not to release films in a particular state is only a short-term solution. "It's not just Malayalam films that face piracy. The Kerala Film Chamber should deal with this on an individual basis or just restrict the release of Malayalam films to good theatres."
Sa Ra Govindu, former secretary of the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce, agrees with Parvathy's point of view, though only partially. "If they decide not to release their films here, it's going to be a loss only for them. They should approach us and we could try to solve the problem together. Only then can we rope in the Karnataka police and take corrective actions," he says.

Kannada filmmaker KM Chaitanya asks, "No Kannada film ever gets pirated. Then, why would we pirate other films? Most Malayalam films are released in multiplexes in Bangalore. If a particular single-screen theatre is the troublemaker, then the Kerala Film Chamber should approach our film chamber and inform them. Even we have an efficient system and if they have taken this decision unilaterally, so it's an insult to our government and concerned institutions," he concludes.