Comedian Kunal Kamra has criticised Bollywood studio T-Series for flagging his latest stand-up special, Naya Bharat, for copyright violations on YouTube. The special has sparked controversy due to Kamra’s jokes about Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.

Copyright infringement notice

T-Series issued a copyright infringement notice against Naya Bharat for Kamra’s use of the song Bholi Si Surat Aankhon Masti from the film Dil To Pagal Hai. Responding to the notice, Kamra took to X (formerly Twitter) and accused T-Series of overreach.

“Hello @TSeries, stop being a stooge,” Kamra wrote. “Parody & Satire comes under fair use legally. I haven’t used the lyrics or the original instrumental of the song.” He argued that if his video could be taken down, so could countless cover songs and dance videos. “Creators please take a note of it. Having said that, every monopoly in India is nothing short of Mafia. So please watch/download this special before it’s taken down. FYI – T-Series, I stay in Tamil Nadu.”

Kamra shared a YouTube screenshot showing that Naya Bharat has been blocked due to copyright restrictions, making it inaccessible to viewers. Additionally, the video will not generate any revenue due to the copyright claims.

T-Series responds
According to a PTI report, a T-Series spokesperson defended the action, stating, “Mr. Kunal Kamra has not taken any authorisation or approval for the usage of the underlying musical work in the song, hence, the content has been blocked for infringement of composition rights.”