Shockingly Dangal, Bollywood’s latest blockbuster, has been leaked online, that too by a Pakistani national residing in Dubai, via his Facebook page.
Stunned, the Dangal team revved into action immediately on Saturday to remove the leak. But the damage had been done.
A prominent member of the Dangal team said,
Our film was pirated and put on Facebook, that shows how casually the menace of piracy is treated. For the man who put up the film, this was his moment of fun and fame, and he was very proud of himself for getting so much attention.Source
While Dangal producers have refrained from giving any official comments on the issue until they are clear on what legal measures are to be taken against the proud perpetrators of this serious criminal offence, CBFC chairperson Pahlaj Nihalani warns the industry about Dubai being the new hub for piracy of Bollywood films.
Direct import from Pakistan into India is prohibited. Since movies are exported and imported between India and Pakistan through Dubai, a lot of the piracy is done in Dubai. Earlier, the CBFC was blamed for piracy. But it has been proven beyond doubt that the censor board has nothing to do with piracy. The menace needs to be checked at the post-production stage of films, and when films travel to Dubai.Pahlaj Nihalani, Censor Board Chief
Meanwhile, Bollywood film producers who have already been hit hard by demonetization, are looking with renewed terror at the damage perpetrated by film piracy.
Rakesh Roshan whose Kaabil opens in January, feels that piracy is here to stay.
Unethical practises that are killing the movie business, will stop only when those perpetrating these illegal activities understand the gravity of their misdeeds and realise how damaging piracy is to our movie-making business. Unless they realise what they are doing, piracy is unstoppable.Rakesh Roshan, Filmmaker
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