Malaysia's help may be sought to end film piracy

By M. Shamim

MUMBAI, MARCH 9. The Indian film industry is likely to request the Malaysian Government to enact a ``carry'' law to prevent piracy of Indian films.

According to Hindi film producers here, Malaysia is currently a haven for smugglers in South-East Asian countries who thrive on illegal prints of the Indian films. ``What Dubai is for gold smugglers, Malaysia is for pirates, who can make any number of copies of tapes and prints of Indian films. In that country, there is no law saying their activity is illegal,'' according to a producer.

The pirated prints are smuggled to Indonesia, Myanmar, Hong Kong, Japan, Thailand and other nearby countries where the Indian films have recently gained unprecedented popularity. The fundamentalists in Malaysia had recently demanded a ban on Indian films because they felt these were full of ``sex and violence'' which led to a rise in crime level in that country.

Subhash Ghai, who was recently in Malaysia to shoot a sequence of his film ``Yaadien'' there, has drawn the attention of the Malaysian Government to the fact that there is no law in the country to prevent those who carried unauthorised copies of Indian film. In a letter to the Malaysian Department of Tourism, which is very keen to invite Bollywood producers to shoot their films in Malaysia, Ghai has stressed the need to enact a suitable law to prevent the unauthorised copies of other person's ``intellectual properties''.

He has also pointed out that other developed nations of the world already have ``carry'' laws, which makes it illegal even to possess an unauthorised copy of the film let alone show it on TV or in commercial theatres.

According to Ghai, Malaysians are a very friendly lot who love Indian films. Songs and dances in the Indian film touch a chord in their heart because these provide a strong undercurrent among all Asian cultures. The unit of ``Yaadien'' has some of the happiest memories of their interaction with the Malaysian people, who were thrilled to meet the latest heartthrob, Hrithik Roshan who stars in the movie.

The Malaysians normally remember the characters the actors play. For them Shah Rukh Khan is ``Rahul'' a character he plays in ``Kuch Kuch Hota Hai''. The Big `B' tops the popularity chart. Salman Khan, Govinda and others also have their followers.

Bollywood distributors feel there is no simple answer to the sudden resistance to Indian films in foreign markets. There was trouble in Nepal, followed by some incidents in South Africa and now it is Malaysia.

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Section  : National
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