Nothing new if someone says that pirated versions of 'Race' or Hollywood's 'John Rambo' can easily be picked up from the grey market at much lower price than the original that would take time to hit the market. What is worrying the industry now is that the pirated versions now come on good quality DVD's or CD's.
Though piracy has always been the bane of the entertainment industry, recent trends show that unlike earlier, the pirated DVD/VCDs are of the highest quality rather than shot clandestinely in a movie hall. In some cases, like Hollywood films, they hit the streets even before the movie has been formally launched in the country.
According to a report by US-India Business Council (USIBC), the Indian media and entertainment industry worth close to $ 6,500 million is losing a little over $ 4,000 million per year due to piracy.
Bollywood actor-director, Aamir Khan calls piracy as the 'greatest concern'. "The greatest concern facing us (entertainment industry) is piracy. It is sad that India is not doing enough to check piracy," he said recently.
"We have been aware of this problem for long but we have not done anything much to keep it in check. A lot of time and money is spent into making a film...," Aamir adds.
Though Aamir's directorial debut Taare Zameen Par was a runaway success both critically and commercially, he says, "There were more than 100 websites through which one could easily download the movie for free. This is part of the piracy ring."
Though the entertainment industry is looking for ways to fight piracy, the black market does not fear much.
"Now the DVDs come from outside. The main copy reaches our distributor and then thousands are duplicated. Usually, the prints come from abroad," says Ramesh who deals with pirated DVDs in an upmarket locality in the capital. "Its only Yash Raj movies that get delayed but by just few days," Ramesh adds.
FICCI Secretary General, Amit Mitra says, "India's entertainment industry already generates more than $ 11 billion annually for the country, growing at a combined annual rate of over 18 per cent. If we can stop piracy, the industry will grow even faster and employ more Indian workers".
The government had recently suggested that the films should be released simultaneously on various forms of media to put an end to the scourge but industry experts point out that it is suicidal.
"If the idea is implemented, all the big film production houses will lose huge amount of money. It is not a wise opinion in any sense. Government should implement some stringent laws on copyright violation," says Shalu Sabharwal, PVR Cinema, one of the country's largest chains of multiplexes. She adds, "Piracy has hit the movie business in a big way."
Film critic Taran Adarsh says "Not only smaller centres but big markets like Mumbai or Delhi are also losing money because of piracy and its high time that government and film industry come together to curb this." He adds, "Why would you go to a theatre if you have the privilege of watching the film with your family with a fine picture quality?"
It is not just the film industry that is loosing money because of piracy but also the music industry. "The total loss to music industry due to piracy is around Rs 600-700 crores (Rs 6-7 billion) per year. Songs and compositions are intellectual property. Government should introduce necessary reforms and set up a central audio-video anti-piracy wing," says Savio DeSouza, General Secretary of Indian Music Industry.
"Piracy is affecting the film, gaming and music segments of the entertainment industry. We need to regulate the whole process of music distribution so that the actual owner of the music gets royalty," says Nilesh Mishra, lyricist of 'Gangster', 'Woh Lamhe' fame.
Advocate Pawan Duggal says, "Piracy comes under copyright infringement and is a serious offence. It's for the film industry to take steps and put pressure on the government to enforce laws to stop this crime."
