The Bombay High Court on Monday granted a dynamic ad-interim injunction to protect the upcoming film ‘Ramayana: Rise of a Legend’ from copyright infringement, restraining unidentified ‘John Doe’ entities and digital platforms from unauthorised recording, hosting, streaming or distributing the film ahead of its global theatrical release.The interim order was passed by Justice Madhav Jamdar in a suit filed by Godpower Media Private Limited, which holds the film’s copyright and exploitation rights in the film after acquiring its domestic and territorial intellectual property rights. The suit sought protection for the film’s underlying script, characters, footage, lyrics and recordings.
Judge Madhav Jamdar passes order to protect film
As reported by Bar and Bench, observing the potential threat of copyright infringement, Justice Jamdar noted, “Prima facie, the plaintiff (Godpower) has real and well-founded apprehension that the film or parts of it will be recorded and uploaded, streamed, or communicated to the public on various platforms.”
‘Ramayana’ clips leaked despite non-disclosure agreements
During the proceedings, the court was informed that Part One of ‘Ramayana’ had been produced at a cost of Rs 2,000 Crore, with the combined budget for the two-part saga amounting to Rs 4,000 Crore. Godpower stated that despite strict non-disclosure obligations imposed during invite-only preview screenings, both trailers had been secretly recorded and circulated across digital platforms.The court’s order includes a dynamic injunction against unidentified ‘John Doe’ entities, enabling action against infringers whose identities may not be known at the time of the proceedings. It also directs internet service providers (ISPs) and social media intermediaries to block or take down infringing links and mirror websites upon receiving written notice.
Google LLC ordered to take down links infringing content
The court further directed Godpower to share the URLs carrying unauthorised copies of the film with the relevant internet service providers and digital platforms, which must then take immediate steps to block access to, disable or remove the infringing content.Counsel representing Google LLC and global social media intermediaries recorded ‘no objection’ to the order and assured the court that they would ‘act promptly’ upon being notified of offending links.The matter is scheduled to be heard next on December 16.The order comes ahead of the film’s global release on November 5. ‘Ramayana’, directed by Nitesh Tiwari, stars Ranbir Kapoor, Sai Pallavi and Yash in lead roles. The film will have a wide release in India and will be available for viewing in multiple languages.
