Title Session 5 - Infringement and exceptions to infringement.pdf ✅

Facts • R G Anand (appellant) is a playwright, dramatist and producer of stage plays. He had written and, produced a number of plays. • The subject matter of the appeal is the play entitled ‘Hum Hindustani'. • This play was written by him in the year 1953 and was enacted in the year 1954 and thereafter the play proved to be popular • In November 1954 the appellant received a letter from the defendant-Mr. Mohan Sehgal requesting the appellant to supply a copy of the play so that he could consider the desirability of making, a film on it. Thereafter, the appellant and defendant met at Delhi.
Facts • In May 1955, the defendant announced the making of a movie ‘New Delhi’, which was released in September 1956 • Appellant filed a suit that the movie was entirely based on his play Hum Hindustani and was an infringement of copyright • Suit was for permanent injunction and damages
Supreme Court • Is the film 'New Delhi' an infringement of the plaintiff's copyright in the play 'Hum Hindustani' ? • “Where the same idea is being developed in a different manner, it is manifest that the source being common, similarities are bound to occur. In such a case the courts should determine whether or not the similarities are on fundamental or substantial aspects of the mode of expression adopted in the copyrighted work. If the defendants work is nothing but a literal imitation of the copyrighted work with some variations here and there it would amount to violation of the copyright. In other words, in order to be actionable the copy must be a substantial and material one which at once leads to the conclusion that the defendant is guilty of an act of piracy”