Chennai: Call it a repeat of ‘Jaggubhai.’ But this time in Telugu film industry. Vijay Devarkonda starrer ‘Taxiwala‘ slated for release this week-end has made it to internet now.
The whole movie has been illegally uploaded in torrent. It has shocked the entire film fraternity in Andhra Pradesh.
An agitated Vijay Devarkonda, said, “It was jolt, a bolt from the blue. We didn’t know what to do. We decided to not talk much about it because the more we speak about online piracy the more people search and find the illicit links. Until the government clamps down heavily on piracy, I feel the best way to combat the menace is to appeal to fans not to watch in piracy.”
According to a leading website, the full movie has been leaked online for ‘free downloading’ even before its release. Apparently, a group of miscreants leaked an ‘unfinished’ copy of ‘Taxiwala‘ some time ago and the same links are going viral now.
Piracy is one of the biggest challenges facing the film industry today. Recently, ‘Sarkar‘ was leaked online within a day of its release and this took a toll on its collections. Similarly ‘Thugs Of Hindostan‘ too fell prey to piracy within hours of hitting the screens.
According to reports, “India’s film industry, said to be the largest globally with some 1,000 movies produced each year, earns around $2 billion from legitimate sources such as screening at theatres, home videos and TV rights. But with $2.7 billion, piracy earns 35 per cent more, and a way out has proved elusive.”
Samaran, an industry tracker, says, “Thanks to broadband connections, people would find it much easier to watch a movie on their laptop than travel to far off theatres. And ticket rates are high. Hence people prefer to watch in mobile phones and laptops. There is need for a collective, structured, scientific, multi-pronged and proactive approach to combat piracy.”
In most cases, an individual records with a camcorder or high-quality mobile camera in a low-light setting of a cinema theatre, or from the projector room on the day of release. Though technology is available to find out from which theatre, a movie is pirated, it is difficult to prevent them.
Tamil Film Producers Council have blacklisted theatres where such crimes took place in the past. They have even asked theatre owners to install cameras inside the cinema hall to keep a watch on those who try to catch a movie in his mobile phone, he added.
Remember in 2010, Sarathkumar starrer ‘Jaggubhai,’ directed by K S Ravikumar, made it to internet much before its theatrical release. The copy was reportedly leaked from post-production studio. Many wondered how the copy leaked from the lab amidst such security.
With pre-release piracy leaks especially the motion posters, teasers and trailers have become a recurring feature. It is very alarming for the industry. Those in the business want government to act at the earliest.