Filmmaker Prakash Jha is angry with 75 Bharatiya Janata Party legislators from Rajasthan, including former chief minister Vasundhara Raje, for watching his latest film Rajneeti on a pirated DVD on Tuesday. The director is contemplating legal action against the politicians for ‘promoting’ piracy.
“Lawmakers are the first to break the law and they have proved it again with Rajneeti. Around 70 politicians saw my film on a pirated DVD and publicly spoke about how much they liked watching it on a DVD. If lawmakers promote piracy openly, instead of clamping down on it, why will the common people, who look up to their chosen leaders, go to a theatre to see a movie? They will follow their leaders’ footsteps and buy the Rs50 pirated CD to watch the film,” a fuming Jha told DNA.
“Politicians should realise they are accountable for their actions and what they’ve done is a crime. Their action has not only resulted in loss of revenue for my film, but also motivated others to follow them by talking openly about watching a pirated film. Forget money, but what about ethics? They know piracy is punishable by law and they still indulge in it. I’m going to take the course of law to bring them to justice.”
The politicians saw the multi-starrer film at a plush hotel in Rajasthan on the eve of the Rajya Sabha polls. It is believed nobody took permission from the hotel owners or licence from the collector to screen the movie.
“I’m in consultation with my legal team. I will take legal action for sure, but it’s too premature to talk about what action. I know I want to make an example out of this case. This social evil has gone too far to become a normal phenomenon in everyday life. This is very unacceptable,” Jha explained.
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