Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill 2023: Will the new rules finally curb the piracy menace?

The Cinematograph Bill 2023, with its new set of rules and regulations has caught the attention of the film industry. Directors, producers, and trade experts are at the forefront, as they discuss the bill’s implications for content certification, censorship, and regulation. While some stakeholders laud the proposed changes for promising to streamline the certification process and empowering filmmakers with creative freedom, others caution against potential challenges that may arise in enforcing certain provisions.

WHAT DOES THE BILL ENTAIL?

During the ongoing monsoon session, the the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha passed the Cinematograph Amendment Bill, 2023, tabled by the Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Anurag Thakur. The bill aims to curb the issue of film piracy and increase the levels of age-based certification categories given by CBFC to improve anti-piracy provisions and attain uniformity in the categorisation. The main goal is to amend the existing Cinematograph Act of 1952. The bill will now be signed into law after the approval of the President of India.

WHAT INDUSTRY EXPERTS HAVE TO SAY

Anand Pandit, Producer

The increased age categorisations create very clear demarcation as to what is appropriate for which age group. Earlier, we had broad age brackets like U/A and this has at times created problems for audiences. For instance, Barbie has been rated PG-13 for suggestive references but many parents confuse it for a children’s film. The newly introduced age categorisations like U/A 7+, U/A 13+ and U/A 16+ will create more transparency and surely provide clearer guidance to viewers about the suitability of the content for different age groups. As filmmakers, it’ll help us also to also understand clearly what kind of a demographic we are creating for. On the other hand, as a producer, I understand the high cost of piracy that my fraternity incurs. It’s undoubtedly a deeply rooted evil in our Industry. I hope the bill will go a long way in curtailing piracy by imposing strict penalties. It can prove to be game changing. But I feel, we can do a lot more as an industry to counter piracy which is a very complex problem. We need to initiate awareness campaigns, and collaborate with various stakeholders including law enforcement, and online platforms to ensure that this problem is effectively tackled.

Atul Mohan, Trade Expert

The Cinematograph Bill is a wise and progressive step by the government. However, I find it a bit confusing and complicated. There are so many age categorisations, how would you understand that what should be controlled for 7-13, or 13-18? Initially, it was simple for parents to decide with U/A and A. Secondly, this might not be able to stop people from recording in the theatres. They may say, ‘Mujhe pata hi nahi tha’. There should be supervision in the theatre to see who is recording... even if it’s a short clip on Instagram, it’s a form of piracy only. There still would be people who are rebellious and don’t tend to listen. Who will call the police for this or take drastic action? TamilRockers is openly saying in the public domain that we will do piracy. It’s difficult to track people’s actions in the day and age of the Internet.

Girish Johar, Producer and trade analyst

Earlier, families with smaller kids would go to watch a U/A category film, but even then they’d find the content a little unfit for family viewing. That’s the reason the government got a lot of feedback from the fraternity and audiences, and the bill came into being. It may seem a little complicated to execute at the ground level, but it’s a humongous step for the fraternity. We lose so much revenues because of piracy in all formats, so controlling that aspect is a fantastic thing. There’s a framework where such people can’t walk free now. I’m happy with this step and it’s a positive development, which people might take some time to fully understand.

Milap Zaveri, Director

The age categorisations will surely improve the procedure of certification of films. You have more options now, so it’s a welcome step. And third party apps, like Telegram, etc, even though they exist right now, they still don’t stop people from going to the theatre and watching the films they want to watch. Pathaan, Rocky Aur Raani Ki Prem Kahaani, Oppenheimer, Barbie, and many others had huge crowds in theatres. I hope the new stricter laws for piracy will act as a deterrent in stopping people from opting for unethical means. Given the punishment, audiences would also be scared to engage in such acts. The theatre staff should also take charge of such things to control the crowd from recording.

Ramesh Taurani, Producer

Implementing age certifications is a wise step by the government, as it be beneficial for films, too. Parents do care about such things these days. And enforcing stricter rules against piracy will surely help in curbing the menace and maybe eliminating it in the long run, and save the producers from incurring losses. Big cinema chains should appoint specialise staff to ensure audiences don’t record during screenings. However, its effectiveness depends on how the state police and state governments will implement the set punishments.