Several Indian films could be sued for plagiarism

Seeking investment for Indian film industry is proving to be a double-edged weapon. With a growth rate of almost 17 per cent, Indian Entertainment and Media industry is flourishing. Iconic film-makers such as Warners, Sony, Universal and DreamWorks have now reached Mumbai, the film capital of India, offering tie-ups with local producers. More money, more films, more business- so far, so good. Here's the bad news; Hollywood giants will not take it kindly if Bollywood producers keep on stealing their themes, stories and screenplays right in front of their eyes. They will sue not only in Mumbai but in London and California as well, writes Kathy Robinson exclusively for iefilmi.

Warner Bros. have sued the producers of "Hari Puttar: A Comedy of Terrors'' made by Mumbai-based Mirchi Movies for plagiarism. They say the movie title as well as its theme resembles too closely to their mega-famous boy wizard franchise- The Harry Potter series.

"There is absolutely nothing to link 'Hari Puttar' with 'Harry Potter,'' says Munish Purii, chief executive officer of Mirchi Movies. Now it's up to the High Court of Mumbai to see who's telling the truth.

List of Indian remakes/copycats/inspirations that could have been sued

Remaking of successful Hollywood films in India has been going on for ages. Indian producers hate the term 'plagiarism'. Instead, they prefer to call their unofficial remakes 'inspirations'. As more and more Hollywood companies are establishing their presence in Mumbai, it's imperative that they will take legal action as and when they see the violation of their copyrights. It's a real serious threat to those Indian producers who earlier thrived on illegitimate copycats/remakes/inspirations- whatever they prefer to call them. It has to stop NOW, say the Hollywood giants. More on iefilmi as www.iefilmi.com is running two stories on this subject.