Javed Akhtar, Rahman seek Southern support for copyright cause

The battle for amending the Copyright Act has now spread beyond Bollywood.

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The battle for amending the Copyright Act has now spread beyond Bollywood. Javed Akhtar and A R Rahman recently went to Chennai and met M Karunanidhi, chief minister of Tamil Nadu to get his support for their cause. Not everyone knows that Karunanidhi used to be a scriptwriter for Tamil films before he entered politics. If Karunanidhi publicly pledges his support, it can greatly benefit the writers who are lobbying to get recognition for their work

Bollywood writers and producers have been on opposite sides for a long time over the issue of copyrights and their share of the revenue. The battle got an impetus when the Centre agreed that it's time the Copyright Act was amended. In fact, HRD Minister Kapil Sibal recently intervened in the battle and requested Aamir Khan to not resign from the committee discussing the issue. The Copyright Amendment Bill is expected to be presented during the Budget session of the Parliament.