Post by James on Feb 17, 2014 21:42:43 GMT
It was inevitable that Hollywood would take a closer look. I wonder if they're trying to sue for infringement considering this is one of the last markets in the world they haven't been able to crack?
Hollywood studios on the prowl
Hollywood Studios are increasingly active in watching what Bollywood is up to these days. And it's not just the concept and stories they are possessive about. even if Bollywood registers a title similar to that of a western film, it is proving to be dangerous.
On top of mind is the example of a Hollywood studio asking Gordhan Tanwani, the producer of Action Jackson to change his title or reportedly face the consequences for title infringement because they had registered it for the Indian market as well.
Shekhar Suman acquired the copyright to remake Awake before starting work on Heartless. Obviously, he didn't want last minute litigation like the producers of Jodi Breakers, who were sued for copying the French film, L'Arnacoeur aka Heartbreakers. Or like the makers of Knock Out who also faced a litigation for copying Phone Booth, a few days before its release.
Before Action Jackson, the makers of R... Rajkumar were issued a notice whereby they had to take out the name 'Rambo' from their title. And stick to a plain R...Rajkumar. Calling this title battle a new development, Gordhan says, "My title has been in public domain for about a year. Warner's Indian company has also made films here after registering their titles with our film associations. When they're working here, they work as per association norms. If they had any problem, they should have referred it to the association. Why send a letter through their California-based lawyers and give 48 hours to reply?"
Ravi Chopra, who was making Banda Yeh Bindaas Hai with Govinda, Lara Dutta and Tabu had a tough time dealing with the copyright case by the producers of the Hollywood film, My Cousin Vinny, who claimed that the Hindi filmmaker had copied their content.
Producer Ratan Jain concedes that it is wrong to copy western films without acquiring the rights. However, he feels that the foreign studios should not extend their vigilance to Hindi film titles, "When an association registers a title for a Hindi film, if the same title being used by a Teugu film for a different subject, it's okay. Because it's a different ball game in a country like India. If English titles are copyrighted, then what will our producers do? Not just Hindi, but many films made in South Indian and other regional languages have English titles."
Another producer concedes that title tattles are no big deal. "If copyright has been infringed by plagiarising content, then it is a case. Just having a title for a film doesn't mean that no one can use it for life or you need someone's permission. There's no compulsion here that American laws have to be followed in India. It's up to the producers to decide whether they want to contest the Hollywood studio's claim or give in."
Hollywood caught napping
n Boney Kapoor used the title Wanted for his Salman Khan film in 2009. Angelina Jolie did a film with the same name in 2008.
n Atul Agnihotri produced Bodyguard in 2011 in which Salman played a bodyguard to Kareena Kapoor Khan. Kevin Costner played the title role in the English film Bodyguard in 1992, where he protected Whitney Houston.
Hollywood studios on the prowl
Hollywood Studios are increasingly active in watching what Bollywood is up to these days. And it's not just the concept and stories they are possessive about. even if Bollywood registers a title similar to that of a western film, it is proving to be dangerous.
On top of mind is the example of a Hollywood studio asking Gordhan Tanwani, the producer of Action Jackson to change his title or reportedly face the consequences for title infringement because they had registered it for the Indian market as well.
Shekhar Suman acquired the copyright to remake Awake before starting work on Heartless. Obviously, he didn't want last minute litigation like the producers of Jodi Breakers, who were sued for copying the French film, L'Arnacoeur aka Heartbreakers. Or like the makers of Knock Out who also faced a litigation for copying Phone Booth, a few days before its release.
Before Action Jackson, the makers of R... Rajkumar were issued a notice whereby they had to take out the name 'Rambo' from their title. And stick to a plain R...Rajkumar. Calling this title battle a new development, Gordhan says, "My title has been in public domain for about a year. Warner's Indian company has also made films here after registering their titles with our film associations. When they're working here, they work as per association norms. If they had any problem, they should have referred it to the association. Why send a letter through their California-based lawyers and give 48 hours to reply?"
Ravi Chopra, who was making Banda Yeh Bindaas Hai with Govinda, Lara Dutta and Tabu had a tough time dealing with the copyright case by the producers of the Hollywood film, My Cousin Vinny, who claimed that the Hindi filmmaker had copied their content.
Producer Ratan Jain concedes that it is wrong to copy western films without acquiring the rights. However, he feels that the foreign studios should not extend their vigilance to Hindi film titles, "When an association registers a title for a Hindi film, if the same title being used by a Teugu film for a different subject, it's okay. Because it's a different ball game in a country like India. If English titles are copyrighted, then what will our producers do? Not just Hindi, but many films made in South Indian and other regional languages have English titles."
Another producer concedes that title tattles are no big deal. "If copyright has been infringed by plagiarising content, then it is a case. Just having a title for a film doesn't mean that no one can use it for life or you need someone's permission. There's no compulsion here that American laws have to be followed in India. It's up to the producers to decide whether they want to contest the Hollywood studio's claim or give in."
Hollywood caught napping
n Boney Kapoor used the title Wanted for his Salman Khan film in 2009. Angelina Jolie did a film with the same name in 2008.
n Atul Agnihotri produced Bodyguard in 2011 in which Salman played a bodyguard to Kareena Kapoor Khan. Kevin Costner played the title role in the English film Bodyguard in 1992, where he protected Whitney Houston.