Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill 2023
The Central Government of India has amended the Bill, 2023 in Rajya Sabha in the last week. The Government had introduced a Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill in Rajya Sabha before it was withdrawn. The new draft of the amendments was prepared after consultation with the industry stakeholders. Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Singh Thakur introduced the legislation that seeks to make amendments to the Cinematograph Act, 1952, to curb the issue of piracy in the Indian film industry.
Union Information and Broadcasting Minister has introduced the Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill, 2023, in the Rajya Sabha, with the goal of addressing piracy concerns in the film industry. The bill proposes to introduce new sections in the Cinematograph Act with provisions to prohibit the unauthorised recording of films (section 6AA) and their exhibition (section 6AB). Provision 6AA also prohibits the recording of any part of the film for the sole usage of the same device.
Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill 2023
| Amendment | The bill proposes to amend the Cinematograph Act, 1952 |
| Harsher Penalty | The act has provisions for harsher penal provisions for film piracy |
| New Age Categories | It introduces new sub-age categories for films to bring about uniformity in categorization across platforms |
| Perpetual Certification | The certification once given will be perpetual |
| New Sub-age based Certification | UA-7+’, ‘UA-13+’, and ‘UA-16+’ in place for 12 years |
| Alignment | The act will be aligned with Supreme Court judgments |
| Recertification | Recertification of the edited film for television broadcast |
| Public Exhibition | Only Unrestricted Public Exhibition category films can be shown on television |
| Uniformity | It will make the act provisions in line with the provisions of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 to maintain uniformity |
Issues with Indian Cinema
- Portrayal of Violence and Sexuality: Some films depict violence and sexual content, impacting younger viewers negatively.
- Reinforcement of Stereotypes: Certain films reinforce gender, caste, and religious stereotypes, perpetuating prejudice.
- Promotion of Materialism: Movies that promote materialism can lead to unrealistic expectations and values.
- Lack of Diversity: The lack of diversity in mainstream films needs to be addressed to ensure equal representation.
- Undue Commercialization: Excessive commercialization may overshadow the importance of quality content.
- Nepotism: The practice of nepotism can hinder deserving talent from entering the industry.
You can download the Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill 2023 PDF using the link given below.
