Moral Rights Versus Commercial Rights Under The Copyright Act: Conflict In The Indian Film And Music Industry
- IJLLR Journal
- Mar 11
- 2 min read
R. Gayatri, Christ (Deemed to be University), Bangalore
ABSTRACT
This paper critically examines the persistent tension between moral rights and commercial rights under the Indian Copyright Act, 1957, with specific reference to the film and music industries. Moral rights which are codified under Section 57 of the Act, primarily confines the right of paternity (attribution) and the right of integrity. These rights are conceptualised as inalienable, perpetual, and enduring beyond the transfer or assignment of copyright. Judicial developments have constantly reinforced the centrality of moral rights. In Mannu Bhandari v. Kala Vikas Pictures, the Delhi High Court affirmed that moral rights survive contractual assignments, and that any distortion altering the essence of an author’s work is impermissible. Similar to this, in Amar Nath Sehgal v. Union of India, the Court described moral rights as the very "soul" of the author's work and provided strong protection to artistic integrity by compensating an artist whose mural had been wrongfully removed and damaged.
In contrast, economic rights which involves reproduction, distribution, performance, and adaptation—are commercial in nature, which are transferable through contract, and limited in duration to the author’s lifetime plus sixty years. In collaborative creative industries like cinema, copyright law often designates producers as the legal authors of the work, by excluding directors, composers, lyricists, and screenwriters from asserting meaningful moral claims over the final product. In the music industry, producers are able to maintain broad global rights while reducing the autonomy of the creator by contracting away both economic benefits and practical control over moral rights in exchange for instant compensation.
This paper argues that the unresolved conflict between the commercial importance of economic rights and the ethical foundations of moral rights continues to undermine the recognition, dignity, and autonomy of creators in India. It contends that a reform-oriented approach must reconcile the need for commercial flexibility with stronger institutional and statutory safeguards for authors’ moral entitlements, particularly in the digital age.
Keywords: Moral rights, commercial rights, right of attribution, right of integrity, authorship, contractual assignment.
