In an attempt to put an end to piracy in films, HeroTalkies, a legal platform for watching films online, launched a 24-hour campaign on Friday.
Actress Suhasini Maniratnam, who spoke during the event, said the exhaustive effort put in by hundreds of people to create a full-fledged film is killed by piracy.
“Some people get an idea once in six months and some only once in 25 years. But transforming that into a film is extremely difficult. Cinema is the platform that links us with the audience. Even a writing a good scene is so tough. Piracy destroys all these efforts in minutes,” she said.
Pradeep Somu, co-founder of HeroTalkies, said many people watch movies from illegal sites without actually knowing it is wrong. In fact, people who indulge in piracy are treated like Robin Hood, he noted. “We follow a process wherein we tie up with producers and distributors, pay a certain amount for each film and purchase it. Viewers can watch it with as low a fee as $8 a month. We have thousands of customers from over 83 countries now,” he added.
The 24-hour event, which was streamed live, covered discussions on various topics ranging from the pricing of tickets to reasons why piracy occurs, with each hour covering an issue, he added. “We will discuss technical issues, theatre owners’ perspectives and the legal angle to get a diverse range of opinions,” he said.
