The Union government has issued a directive that playing Bollywood songs at weddings and related festivities would not invite action related to copyright infringement. The directive came on a plea made by the hospitality industry.
Although the Copyright Act stipulates that the playing of copyrighted music at such functions is well withing legal boundaries, copyright societies often demand licence fees for the songs, resulting in unnecessary disputes.
In a public notice on July 24, the Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) said that it had received multiple complaints from the public and stakeholders regarding the collection of royalties by copyright societies for playing music at wedding functions. This is in violation of section 52(1)(2a) of the Copyright Act, 1957, and does not count as infringement, as the section specifies that playing a literary, dramatic or musical work or communicating it to the public during a religious or official ceremony by the central/state government or any local authority does not infringe copyright. This includes marriage processions and other social festivities, which are considered religious ceremonies under this clause.
The DPIIT, in its notice, said that copyright societies were directed to avoid actions that went against this section, so as not to invite legal action.