The Great Indian Kapil Sharma Show Copyright Case: Bombay High Court Gives Comedian Two Weeks To Respond

Renowned comedian Kapil Sharma has landed in legal trouble days after the premiere of The Great Indian Kapil Sharma Show Season 4's first episode. The copyright dispute involving Kapil and his OTT show has now reached the Bombay High Court. The court has granted Kapil Sharma, his production company K-9 Films, and Netflix two weeks to present their side of the petition. The petition was filed by Phonographic Performance Limited (PPL) India. PPL India alleges that some popular Bollywood songs were used in the third season of the show without the necessary licenses. According to the petition, songs such as M Bole To (from Munna Bhai MBBS), Rama Re (from the film Kaante), and Subah Hone Na De (from the film Desi Boyz) were played in various episodes

of the show, which violates copyright law.

Kapil Sharma lands in legal trouble over copyright issue

PPL states that these songs were used not only during filming but are also clearly audible in episodes later broadcast on OTT platforms. The organisation claims that this falls under the category of "public performance" and "communication to the public," for which prior permission and licensing are mandatory. The petition also states that a notice was previously sent regarding this matter, but a satisfactory response was not received. PPL has requested the court to prohibit the use of unlicensed sound recordings and prevent such incidents from recurring in the future.The plea highlights that three completed seasons, with multiple episodes, have already aired, and shooting for Season 4 is currently in progress. It raises concerns that PPL’s sound recordings may be further exploited in the new season. The ongoing production amplifies the urgency, as each new episode poses a potential infringement risk.PPL argues that the producers are infringing on its copyrighted works by attempting to use them without a proper license and requests the court to intervene. The plea urges judicial action to safeguard the rights of copyright holders and ensure adherence to intellectual property laws in the entertainment industry.

Kapil Sharma, his production company, Netflix gets 2 week's time to respond

As directed by the Bombay High Court, Kapil Sharma, the show's producers, and Netflix must file their responses within the stipulated timeframe, after which the court will hear the copyright dispute further. During the hearing today, Justice Sharmila Deshmukh granted the accused in the case two weeks to respond to the petition.