Legal tussle in Bollywood Leading Bollywood lyricist Javed Akhtar is among those campaigning for a change, which involves a legal battle in the courts against big music labels. -- PHOTO: LIMELIGHT ARTS MUMBAI - MUSIC composers and lyricists in India's Hindi-language film industry have joined forces to fight for better pay, copyright and royalties on their work.
Leading Bollywood lyricist Javed Akhtar is among those campaigning for a change, which involves a legal battle in the courts against big music labels. 'This move has just been initiated by all of us and we hope to get fair rights and money for our songs,' he said. The average Bollywood 'masala' film has at least six songs and a dramatic score which very often determines whether a movie will be a hit or a flop. But the pay rates often have nothing to do with how a film fares at the box office. Composers and lyricists now want this to change and to retain the rights over their work. A lyricist can be paid anything from US$100 dollars to US$10,000 (S$147 to S$14,700) for one song, depending on how well known they are. Composers - also referred to as music directors - can be paid between US$20,000 and US$400,000 per film. Film producers set the rates of pay, then sell the songs to music companies which retain the sole copyright on sales and digital rights and earn lifetime royalties. Legendary music director A.R. Rahman, who won two Oscars this year for his work on the hit film 'Slumdog Millionaire,' was the first composer to challenge the system. He insisted on a clause in his contract that he would retain the rights over his songs and refused to compose for producers if he was not allowed to perform them at live concerts without permission. As a result, he refused to write for the Shahrukh Khan blockbuster 'Om Shanti Om' in 2007, which became one of Bollywood's top grossing films ever. India's music industry is worth an estimated US$151 million and is projected to grow to US$216 million by 2013, according to a KPMG report on the country's entertainment industry. Bollywood tunes are among the biggest sellers, topping music charts and available in a number of formats, including as ringtones in India's burgeoning mobile phone sector. Composers and lyricists have blamed industry bodies for not addressing the situation but they say their hands are tied. -- AFP http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Lifestyle/Story/STIStory_374503.html -- regards, Vithur
