Rajya Sabha gives thumbs-up to the Copyright Amendment Bill

Musicians, songwriters, scriptwriters and other creative minds have a reason to smile. On Thursday, the Rajya Sabha gave a thumbs-up to the Copyright Amendment Bill which lyricist Javed Akhtar was pushing for.TOI asked renowned musicians if this is the first step to a bigger change.
According to singer-songwriter Shubha Mudgal, the passing of the Copyright Amendment Bill in the Rajya Sabha makes for a landmark event for artistes and for the creative community in India.She expresses, “Although the Bill has yet to be moved in the Lok Sabha, there is no doubt that it will empower artistes in an unprecedented manner in the event that it is accepted in both houses of Parliament.”
In a nutshell, what the Bill will do is to amend existing copyright laws in India, to ensure that artistes and creators of artistic works are able to retain the right to benefit from multiple uses of their works in different formats. She adds, “This means, in simple terms, that if I compose a song for a film, and receive payment for the same, I will still be entitled to earn royalty from the sale of the same song in a different format, such as a ringtone. However, this is not to say, that the rights of producers etc have not been kept in mind. A share of the sale price from my song in ringtone format will also go to producers or other stakeholders.”
Agreeing with Mudgal, Ehsaan Noorani (of Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy) shares, “In the West, families of legendary artistes live off royalties from songs created by the artistes. People need to understand that an artiste’s income is limited. Passing the bill will definitely benefit an artiste. Plus, filmmakers are monetising the evolving new media and formats. I think artistes should definitely benefit from this.”
So when films gain monetary benefits from works of musicians and composers, the original creator shouldn’t be written off, says Ehsaan. “It’s not fair. So many times we walk into airports and hear music played by Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Also, it’s important for an artiste to understand his / her own rights and the law,” he adds.
Considering it to be a fresh start for artistes across India, actor-singer-songwriter Monica Dogra is excited about the bill being passed in the Rajya Sabha. She shares, “I think it’s a really great move. Musicians need to take back the power and the ownership of what they create. I’m really excited about this bill and what it means for the future of music in the country.”
For Pandit Vishwamohan Bhatt, it’s a welcome change. “I am happy and the music world will be very happy to hear this. It’s great news, but I still feel that once it gets passed, there should be a strong body or institution to keep a check on the royalties. The Indian Performing Right Society (IPRS) is one such body that works towards artistes’ rights. I get royalty for my songs that are played on international flights. But yes, 50 per cent is what goes to IPRS and 50 per cent comes to me,” he shares.
Singer Palash Sen puts forth a different view. He says, “We don’t have a music industry, we have a film industry. And the bigger problem is that here artistes are unaware of their own rights. Forget artistes, even an average guy doesn’t know his rights. Here, copyright means ‘Right to copy’.”
So, will the bill really make a difference? We’ll just have to wait and watch.
Tweets on the copyright amendment bill
@KailashKher: Javed Akhtar is a real hero for fighting for all creative people, we are blessed to see the change and people behind it. Finally copyright
@AzmiShabana copyright amendment bill passed in Rajya Sabha Javeds historic moment 2 give lyricists composers 12 percent of their rightful share.
@singer_shaan: A Grand Salute to JavedSaab for his relentless efforts!!! Rs may have fallen...But Passing of the Copyright Bill marks a big leap forward!!!
@sonuniigaam Copyright act passed by the Rajyasabha.. For not just the composers and lyrics writer but singers too. Congratulations. Kudos @Javedakhtarjadu.