Video piracy: Industry hints at 'inside job'

NDTV: "There is all-round agreement that piracy is the biggest problem affecting the film industry today and its no secret that the biggest centre for pirated Hindi films is in Pakistan.

But now, members of the industry on both sides of the border are openly saying that more often than not, Bollwyood's distributors are playing a role in the piracy of their own films. Many say that as the borders become less rigid, not just distributors but even film producers visiting Pakistan with their films are being tempted by the piracy mafia.

"I was given an offer by a pirate in Pakistan to give my film to them on DVD, said Pooja Bhatt, filmmaker.

From Pakistan, the VCDs then go all over the world. Over 1,40,000 CDs and DVDs containing Indian music and movies were seized in a recent raid in the Netherlands where this year's India International film Awards (IIFA) are taking place.

Even the police are in the know. But as long as these producers do not own up and the distributors stop pirating films themselves, Bollywood can keep on complaining about piracy as long as they want to and then pass the blame on to someone else."