Introduction
The advent of the internet has been one of the biggest revolutionary milestones in human history. Each passing moment had given rise to more innovations and solutions since the world was virtually interconnected due to the internet. But as with anything, for every good that we got from the internet, there was an equal amount of bad too, most notably being online piracy. Digital piracy has single-handedly brought down revenues for the digital industry, be it movies, songs, games, software etc. Online sites distribute copyright content for free and due to this there has been a significant number of users who choose to use such sites for download, the sites themselves are very user friendly and easily accessible, even after the government banned most of these, people still use VPN tools to access them, this has become an addictive process also for many users. Using VPN is also illegal and it should not be encouraged at any cost.
The movie industry has taken the worst hit worldwide amongst all, it is estimated that roughly around $29.2 billion losses are incurred by the film industry annually. Sites like Khatrimaza parasite off of the film industry distributing movies illegally. How has the world been affected by piracy and how are we tackling this matter, this article takes a closer look at such issues. This article doesn’t promote or support digital piracy in any form.
About ‘Khatrimaza’
Khatrimaza is an online website that is infamously known to distribute movies and tv shows. The appealing look that the website offers doesn’t hide the fact that the website’s main motive is the illegal distribution of digital content. The functionality of the website is very streamlined and lets you easily search for your favourite movie from an ocean of movies.
Majority of the movies present on Khatrimaza are from Hollywood and Bollywood, but they have movies in different languages too, like Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Bhojpuri, Kannada, etc. Even though the site started with just a few titles on its database, it now contains every latest released movie and the upload rate of this site is quite fast, there are chances of the movie being present right on the day of release and sometimes even before. Most of the movies on here are of HD quality however they have options where you can choose different video qualities and formats including different download sizes as well. Khatrimaza boasts a very professional and trendy look but even with all these intricacies let’s not forget that in the end, illegal download of any content doesn’t hold up good with the law and action can be taken against this.
Movies Leaked by Khatrimaza website
Khatrimaza gives you an endless supply of the latest movies and most of them have great quality but illegally, any movie that has hit the theatre will be available on this site for download or streaming. A lot of classics and blockbusters from all the different industries are present here, some Hollywood movies on here are Joker, Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, 1917, Parasite, Avengers: Endgame, Spider-Man: Far From Home, The Irishman, John Wick, Justice League, The Nun, Godzilla, etc. Some entries from Bollywood are War, Sanju, 2.0, Thugs of Hindustan, Hate Story, Raees, Baahubali, Phir Hera Pheri, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, 3 Idiots, PK, Great Grand Masti, etc. If you are a person who enjoys regional movies then the Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, movies are Pailwan, Devaki, Rustum, Nanna Prakara, 3 Gante 30 Dina 30 Second, Kirik party, Moothon, Thrissur Pooram, Vikruthi, 118, Porinju Mariyam Jose, Viswasam, Airaa, Mr. Local, Jiivi, Kadaram Kondan, Mehandi Circus, etc There is something for everybody on here.
Khatrimaza in India
In India, the main sources to watch digital content have been cable TVs, but after India was introduced to the internet everybody jumped on this wagon. There were always theatres where people used to watch movies but when the internet became much more portable and was integrated with smartphones, people now enjoyed digital content from the comfort of their couches. Streaming services like Netflix, Hotstar, etc were rising in usage, but these services charge people to use them and therefore there was an equal rise of netizens on sites like Khatrimaza, when you are getting the same content for free why would you pay for a subscription. With young people being a large portion of the Indian population, these trends tend to catch on fast.
List of similar websites like Khatrimaz movie download site
There are plenty of websites just like Khatrimaza, that distribute high-quality illegal movies. Most of these sites have the same features and aesthetics as the next one, but even then here is a list of some other piracy sites.
Filmy4wap
Bollyshare
Moviespur
Pagalworld
Jiorockers
Worldfree4u
Gomovies
Tamilrockers
123movies
Filmywap
9xmovies
Movierulz
Bolly4u
Isaimini
7starhd
Moviesda
Katmovie
MkvCage
Afilmywap
What is the government doing to stop piracy?
Policies and laws are placed by many world governments to oppose copyright infringement, if any person is found breaching these laws then heavy fines and jail time can be imposed. This usually depends on the action that the accuser takes, sometimes a warning notice is sent and the content is removed from the website or the entire website itself is blocked, but other times the accuser might demand reimbursement of any monetary damages. But in many cases even tracking down the culprit becomes a tough process where time and money need to be invested and hence some cases are dropped.
What will happen if I download movies Illegally in India?
Government and big movie corporations have worked together in trying to put an end to digital piracy. Under the Copyright law of 1957,
Since India is a developing country, the government has to look after other important affairs and issues, investing in digital piracy would be negligent when problems like malnutrition, sanitation, unemployment are still afloat. Therefore it is largely also the participation of the people which can help in eliminating this issue.
Why do people download movies Illegally?
This can vary from person to person, but with the average population of India we can narrow it down to two things, time and money.
When a new movie is released the only option a person has to watch it is in the theatre, watching in the theatre has its advantages but for a person who doesn’t want to spend hours just sitting at a single place, the theatre can turn out to be a horror house for them, also the sitting arrangement is some theatre distracts your focus from the movie plot. Downloading and watching a movie from the comfort of their couch and at their own pace can be enticing.
Theatres sometimes charge a high amount of money for a movie. they compensate by saying the theatre quality or seating arrangements. But very few people go to see the aesthetic of a theatre, rather people just want to enjoy the movie. These absurd prices demotivated a person to head to a theatre and let’s not forget the prices of soft drinks and popcorn. Downloading movies from sites like Khatrimaza are free of cost and the money saved can be utilized for some other event.
What are the Effects of Illegally downloading a movie?
The effects of illegal download tend to vary, there are the obvious short term effects but even predictable long term effects as well. Usually, any effect due to piracy is completely neglected when indulging in digital piracy. This negligence can sometimes affect the same person too, it’s like a serpent biting its own tail, if only the person could realize this then everybody could work along harmoniously. Below let’s take a look at some of the short and long term effects that are bought on by digital piracy.
Short term:- The first thing that comes to mind when talking about the short term is revenue, the film industry invests a large amount of capital in the making of a movie, this could be personal investments, third party or bank loan. This capital enables the creator to deliver an exceptional movie that is worth watching, a creator firstly would just appreciate good credit to his work and since profits are needed to sustain the business, a good revenue can uplift spirits. However on the day of the release or even before, hackers and social engineers might steal the movie and upload them on an online website. Due to this a large chunk of the audience will move towards these platforms to watch the movies for free, this will cause a tremendous loss to the filmmaker making them lose revenue from an intended audience and because of this an entire domino effect will be generated.
Long term:- This would continue from repeated abuse of digital piracy since the creator loses a ton of revenue, the jobs generated during the filmmaking process are put under jeopardy, a lot of people might end up losing jobs which can drastically affect a family’s livelihood. The jobs markets that were a part of the film industry could slowly start fading out impacting society. Besides this, the morality of the people can be greatly hit, any foreseeable future work could be slowed down or even completely shut down. This, in turn, would deprive the fan base or just people who enjoyed the creator’s work of any upcoming project. This could strangle the creative process present in the art and media industry that is greatly needed in this robotic generation, this could carry society into a modern dark age.
How can you stop digital piracy?
From the above discussion, it is safe to assume that digital piracy is like a double-edged sword, the rampant use of piracy can diminish the creative work of a person and when this effect spreads onto the entire film industry, pirates will not have any content to steal and distribute. But even from this, the former is greatly damaged that the latter and such kind of an event would be horrific to witness. Therefore we must try to end digital piracy or at least reduce its presence.
Education:-
The consequences of online piracy must be instilled at an early age, the addition of this in school or college curriculum will not only promote anti-piracy but also teach students the importance of rules and regulations in society. Besides this film corporations must increase awareness among the public by constant PR and media marketing.
Being resourceful:-
Hackers that work on these piracy sites have a very good understanding of the software and hardware that goes into it. If these skills could be implemented in ethical hacking then a lot of benefits can be gained from this. There need not be hiding anymore, the work done will be openly appreciated and the contributions towards society can help in better advancements. The current market for computer technology is abundant and opportunities are ever-rising.
Reducing prices:-
Theatres must try to decrease prices of movie tickets, yes it is understandable that with improvements in movie technology prices will be increased, but it should be kept in mind that the average person doesn’t need a high level of comfort for a short period. This approach can increase the theatre audience and greater revenues can be generated.
Conclusion
Digital piracy is a process that can’t be entirely put an end to, we can only strengthen our efforts to reduce it. Digital piracy has already planted its seed into society and with its roots firmly grounded, our best option is to cut the branches. This process is the responsibility of every individual and only with unity, we can stop its spread.
No matter how difficult it is to stop piracy, we should make people aware that privacy is a grave crime, and one should not commit such crime. Priacy should not be encouraged and we should educate and tell the people that privacy and downloading illegal content is punishable in the eyes of law. We should encourage the audience to buy or pay for the movies which they want to watch.
