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'INDIAN THATHA'- A MONITISABLE IP

  The movie ‘INDIAN’ directed by Director Shankar; released in the year 1996 was a mammoth block buster. Actor Kamal Hassan in the role of the daring & dashing old man or what the fans fondly call as ‘INDIAN THATHA’ out did himself (naturally). The celebrated character ‘INDIAN THATHA’ with the very intriguing costume had also become quite famous. Nevertheless, the potential of the character as a monitisable intellectual property is quite under played by the makers. However, the characters potential has been clearly displayed in the sequel ‘INDIAN 2’ in its grand and pompous song THATHA VARARU. That being said, I wonder whether the authors are contemplating to exploit the character sooner or later. If the character is copyrighted, the protection given under Indian copyright law for an artistic work is author's lifetime plus 60 years after their death. Which means the character/artistic work is awarded protection for nearly 120 years.  In my opinion, I can clearly see a nativ

CINEMA AND IP

 

CINEMA AND IP 

Cinematograph film in terms of the copyright act 1957 and in general terminology what we refer to as Movies, films, cinema is a very complex art form and this intellectual creation involves the creative thought process of numerous individuals. The potential ways and avenues of exploiting such an intellectual property has witnessed a dramatic shift in the recent times.



A cinematograph film or a movie consists of a bundle of intellectual property rights such as songs, lyrics, scripts, sound recordings, characters etc., each one of them inherently and independently capable of optimum exploitation.

In addition to that, the advent of OTT platforms and technological advancement has paved way and demand for creation of more content.  Further, the audience of a cinematograph film are diverse transcending language and geographical barriers. This excessive patronage has not only seen improvement in interesting, different and  commendable  content creation but has also led to improvement in the quality of the film in terms of clarity in picture, sound, computer graphics etc.

The current scenario has created a fertile base leading to various  other intellectual properties; such as inventions of high definition cameras, software’s, TV's with HD screens and other equipment of movie making to enhance the whole movie watching experience. Some even transform you in to a different world altogether.  It is all because of the new technology that creation of fantasy worlds that look more real has been possible.

Movie as an IP has great potential to generate further IP.

In this context I want to bring to your notice the Cannes Film Festival in France that took place on  17.05.2022. Our Union Minister L. Murugan expressed at the Cannes Next that India has the biggest talent pool of technical and software talent, which play a crucial role in movie making and more particularly in the audio-visual sector, including artificial intelligence and virtual reality. He further urged global filmmakers to explore the country's lucrative movie market.

He also stated that “Audio-visual is the area where technology marries art,” and expressed his happiness that five Indian start-ups -VerboLabs, Kroop AI, Roots Video, Gamitronics and Pocket Aces were showcasing  their expertise at the Cannes Next.

This  trend has to be embraced with open arms  to encourage generation of more intellectual creations  and create new avenues and markets.