Written by: Priyanshi Pandey , B.A.LL.B (3rd Year ), Galgotias University
ABSTRACT
Copyright is an economic right that allows or prohibits the exploitation of a work for profit. Moral rights, on the other hand, are non-economic rights that safeguard the private interests of individual authors and creators. Specifically, these rights safeguard their reputations. They only apply to copyrighted works, not any type of design right, for example. Moral rights are specifically applicable to literary, theatrical, musical, and artistic works, as well as films. This comprises books, professional reports and articles, architectural drawings, photographs, illustrations, advertisements, and so on. It is critical that corporations consider moral rights while using or acquiring copyrighted works. This is because the person with moral rights is often not the same as the copyright holder. Furthermore, moral rights cannot be given.
Key Words – Moral rights , criticism , right to integrity
INTRODUCTION
Today, there are several copyright difficulties concerning writers' moral rights, which is a significant and long-standing part of copyright law around the world. Copyright is essentially an economic right that incorporates a number of rights. When an author assigns the copyright to his work, either totally or partially, he may question if he will lose all rights or retain some type of ownership.
Copyright is an economic right that allows or prohibits the exploitation of a work for profit. Moral rights, on the other hand, are non-economic rights that safeguard the private interests of individual authors and creators. Specifically, these rights safeguard their reputations. They only apply to copyrighted works, not any type of design right, for example. Moral rights are specifically applicable to literary, theatrical, musical, and artistic works, as well as films. This comprises books, professional reports and articles, architectural drawings, photographs, illustrations, advertisements, and so on.
It is critical that corporations consider moral rights while using or acquiring copyrighted works. This is because the person with moral rights is often not the same as the copyright holder. Furthermore, moral rights cannot be given. The force that has propelled humankind forward for ages is the ability to question the current quo and critique accepted standards. Severe clashes with prevailing notions have frequently led to extreme originality and inventiveness. For example, Copernicus came to the conclusion that the Sun, not the Earth, was at the centre of the solar system after critique of Aristotelian theories on the Earth's astronomical location.The Catholic Church found it extremely difficult to accept the notion that the Earth was not the centre. However, the world could have missed out on one of the greatest scientific discoveries if Copernicus had not ventured to draw a different conclusion from Aristotle's observations.
Moral Rights and Their Development In Recent Years
Moral rights explicitly refer to an author's personal rights over the integrity of his works, with the goal of preventing any adjustments or alterations, regardless of ownership. They provide an intriguing contrast to the prevailing economic reasons that dominate current copyright issues. This, in turn, allows for the exploration of novel techniques to settling copyright problems. The creation of a moral rights framework inside the Indian Copyright Act of 1957 was a progressive, collaborative process that prioritised author concerns.
How can one obtain moral rights, and what forms of work?
When a work is copyrighted, moral rights are formed. No registration is required to exercise moral rights at work. Moral rights are often protected during the author's lifetime and for a few years after his or her death. Some countries require the author to proclaim his moral rights before exercising them. Moral rights cannot be transferred or assigned to an individual. However, moral rights might be passed to the author's legal representatives following his death.
Moral rights are related to:
• Artistic works such as photographs, sketches, paintings, craftworks, murals, maps, and plans
• Literary works such as written material and computer programs
• Dramatic works such as plays and screenplays
• Musical works
• Films which include documentaries, music videos, commercials, and feature films
• Performances both live and recorded
Who possesses moral rights, on what types of works, and how are they obtained?
VARA grants moral rights to the author of a "work of visual art." VARA defines visual art as paintings, drawings, prints, sculptures, and photographs that exist in a single or limited edition of 200 signed and numbered copies or fewer. To be protected, a photograph must be taken only for display purposes. VARA exclusively covers works of "recognised stature;" posters, maps, globes, motion movies, electronic publications, and applied art are among the types of visual works explicitly excluded from VARA protection.
JUDICIARY’ S OPINION
Manu Bhandari: Moral Rights Are Inalienable
Mannu Bhandari is, in many respects, the prototypical Indian case study on moral rights. It addresses the right to integrity, which is undoubtedly the most potent moral right recognised by Indian and international copyright law. One well-known Indian novelist who writes in Hindi is Mannu Bhandari. Kala Vikas Pictures, a production company, purchased the rights to make a film adaptation of one of her novels .In Hindi, the novels are titled Aap Ka Bunty .In the agreement between Bhandari and Kala Vikas, the novelist promised to let the film's director and screenwriter to make required alterations for successful production.Bhandari would still be recognised as the author of the original novel.
As the film production continued, Bhandari felt displeased with the quality of the adaptation. She criticised the film's title, which was later modified.
The case of Amar Nath Sehgal v. Union of India is largely recognised as a key case in moral rights. In this case, the plaintiff, who sculpted a bronze sculpture that had been displayed in Delhi's International Convention Hall for 20 years, observed its removal and destruction in a storehouse. The plaintiff sued the Government of India under Section 57 of the Act. The court determined that Section 57 should be liberally interpreted to include the destruction of an artwork, which is the most severe kind of mutilation. The act of deleting a work reduces the author's creative body of work, which has a negative impact on their reputation. Mutilation essentially refers to the destruction that makes the work defective.
The Court defined the extent of moral rights under Section 57 by distinguishing four types: i) the Paternity Right, ii) the Dissemination Right, iii) the Moral Right of Integrity, and iv) the Right to Retraction. The Paternity Right refers to the author's right to be identified with his work. The Dissemination Right refers to the economic right to sell the work for valuable compensation. The Moral Right of Integrity protects the author's right to maintain the purity and integrity of his work. Finally, the Right to Retraction allows creative artists to withdraw their work from publication.
In the Raj Rewal case, the author of the Hall of Nations (a building in Pragati Maidan, Delhi) had his moral rights put into question. The plaintiff was commissioned by the defendant, the ITPO, in 1979 to build the Hall of Nations as a symbol of cultural advancement in honour of India's 25th Independence Day. The Hall of Nations was created using a space frame structure, not only for the roof but also for the surrounding walls, and it is now recognised as a cultural heritage site. However, in 2017, the Hall of Nations was demolished to make room for a new complex. The complainant attempted many appeals to the government and filed various petitions, but was unsuccessful.
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