In February, Salil Jamdar, an independent creator from Mumbai, received an unexpected email from YouTube regarding a copyright claim. The claim had been made by T-Series, a dominant force in the Indian music industry, which controls a significant portion of the market. The video in question was a diss track centered on the rivalry between Indian record label T-Series and Swedish content creator Felix “PewDiePie” Kjellberg for the title of most-subscribed YouTube channel.
Jamdar, who is known for his Bollywood parodies, was taken aback as his diss track contained no copyrighted content. “It was absurd; the reason cited for the claim simply said ‘PEWDIPIE,’ and even that was misspelled,” he shared with Gadgets 360. “It reflected the overwhelming power T-Series has. They must have just instructed someone to take it down without any comprehension of the situation.”
After voicing his concerns publicly to his YouTube audience, Jamdar’s video was reinstated. However, T-Series later filed another claim, this time citing “PIEWDIEPIE DERAGATORY COMMENT” with two additional misspellings. Jamdar contested this as well, resulting in the video’s return for the second time.
YouTube clarified that T-Series had issued a Content ID claim against Jamdar’s video, although it did not lead to a strike or removal. This claim caused his video to be inaccessible to viewers, a point Jamdar emphasized. The matter was ultimately resolved by T-Series “manually,” after which Jamdar opted to make the video private.
“I was left wondering if they were intentionally messing with me. It was perplexing,” Jamdar recounted. “I decided to remove it myself and instead uploaded an older version without naming T-Series or PewDiePie directly.” Such situations are extreme; typically, creators like Jamdar simply lose out on advertising revenue due to copyright laws.
India’s copyright regulations do not recognize parodies under fair use, granting only the copyright holder the right to create them. This has significant implications, curbing creativity and humor in the industry. If the trends continue unchecked, Indian creators may find themselves leaving YouTube altogether, leading to a potential decline in the parody genre.
A Grey World
Experts in intellectual property law explained that while fair use allows for criticism, parodies do not qualify as legitimate opinions or assessments. “A spoof is an exaggerated imitation designed solely for entertainment,” noted the Indian Music Industry (IMI) in a statement. “Typically, such works are made with the intent to gain popularity or commercial success by leveraging the original creator’s reputation, thus disqualifying them from being considered a review.”
So how does YouTube manage the myriad of copyright claims it receives? Each piece of content uploaded, whether video or audio, has a unique Content ID that helps track its usage. When a match is found, the original copyright holder is notified.
Anand Doshi, co-founder of Click Digital Studios and owner of Bollywood parody channels such as Shudh Desi Gaane and Shudh Desi Endings, elaborated, “You can attach a Content ID to your song, allowing others to use it on their channels while you monetarily benefit from ads generated.” Alternatively, creators can opt to take down videos that use their songs. When a copyright claim is made, YouTube verifies the claim before deciding to monetize or remove the content in question.
Jamdar has noticed significant inconsistencies in how these claims are handled. “There’s one video of mine that was protected because it was considered fair use. Yet, another parody, which is identical, faced a claim. Why is one deemed fair use while the other isn’t?” he questioned. The implications are major, as a substantial portion of his revenue has gone to others due to these inconsistencies.
Bollywood Is No Fun
The issues aren’t exclusive to T-Series. A well-known incident involved Yash Raj Films (YRF) and the now-defunct comedy group All India Bakchod (AIB). In 2013, AIB sought permission to parody the trailer of the action film Dhoom 3, starring Aamir Khan, but YRF refused the request. AIB then highlighted the struggles of creating parodies in India, questioning why Bollywood remains resistant to humor at its expense.
Ironically, by rejecting the parody, YRF became the target of a joke itself. However, there have been exceptions where YRF has collaborated on parody projects, often depending on the nature of the pitch or involved stars. Notably, Shah Rukh Khan has participated in several spoofs, including a parody of the song “Gerua” from Dilwale, demonstrating that some actors are open to engaging with humor.
Unfortunately, independent creators face ongoing challenges. T-Series has faced accusations of plagiarizing the work of others. For example, in February, electronic music producer Ritviz Srivastava discovered that a remixed version of his track “Udd Gaye” had appeared in a theater while he was watching a film. Srivastava expressed his frustration on Twitter, stating that neither he nor his management had authorized the use of his music. Although T-Series did not admit wrongdoing, they later removed their version from all platforms.
T-Series did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
Make India Proud Again
This issue is particularly contentious for Jamdar, who feels that T-Series, a company that overlooks independent creators, seeks to rally Indian support for its own growth. During its competition with PewDiePie, T-Series frequently appealed to national pride, declaring it vital for Indian viewers to help them surpass the Swede.
T-Series chairman and managing director Bhushan Kumar, who initially downplayed the rivalry, switched his tone months later, urging subscriptions to T-Series as a “historic movement for all of us.”
In reaction to PewDiePie’s diss track aimed at T-Series—blocked in India due to defamation—numerous Indian creators produced diss tracks supporting T-Series. “These creators, even if they understood what was happening behind the scenes, chose to participate in this phenomenon,” Jamdar observed. “It was a misguided attempt to unite for T-Series.” He also faced requests from his followers to support T-Series, prompting him to share the realities of the situation, despite anticipating backlash. Many seemed blinded by the connection between patriotism and T-Series.
For Jamdar, the central issue lies in the fact that T-Series is a major corporation that undermines individual creators while masquerading as a culturally relevant entity. He reflects on wanting to create content that would challenge viewers to question their loyalties to both T-Series and PewDiePie: “Both are simply leveraging the situation for growth.” This perspective fueled his creation of the aforementioned diss track, through which he aimed to highlight the detrimental tactics of corporations like T-Series against individual creators.
A Parody-less Future
The IMI maintains that record labels are supportive of independent creators, but holds that creators do not have unfettered access to copyrighted content. Independent creators beg to differ, feeling stifled by rigid copyright enforcement. “We produced around 10 to 15 songs but couldn’t monetize any due to copyright issues,” Doshi shared. “This left us without a sustainable income or growth prospects.”
In contrast, in the United States, copyright law provides more extensive protections for fair use, often enabling record labels to share revenue with creators, a model that remains absent in India.
“Of course, when creating parodies, you need to acknowledge you are drawing on a tune,” Jamdar stated. “However, the outcome is something genuinely unique, entitling creators to recognition and compensation for their efforts. Despite putting considerable time and resources into my videos, a significant portion of the revenue ends up with the labels.”
The IMI countered, asserting that creators seek to exploit the intellectual property of others without proper justification, emphasizing the legal right to protect their work. “Your right to act ends where my rights begin,” they concluded.
Facing limited options, many independent creators are now pivoting away from parodies. Doshi’s Shudh Desi Gaane has shifted focus to original content, having refrained from parodies for three years. Similarly, Jamdar has been increasingly developing original creations instead of parodic works.
However, abandoning parody altogether may not be necessary. Alternatives do exist outside of YouTube, notably platforms like Facebook that implement less stringent copyright policies. Following one of Jamdar’s parodies being removed from YouTube, it gained significant popularity on Facebook, where copyright enforcement proved ineffective.
Cover image by Meena Kadri licensed under CC BY 2.0
