At a time when the Indian music industry is constantly releasing remakes and remixes of classical old tunes, the melophiles of our country are simply yearning for something original. But creating and publishing authentic Indian music is more than just fixing up the right mix of melody, rhythm, and sound!
The real heavy lifting comes when you have to prevent your creation from being widely pirated or plagiarized. To ensure your tunes legally remain yours, you must copyright them as soon as possible. Here is a comprehensive music copyright guide for Indian musicians:
How can artists copyright their music and composition?
Here is the five-step process of copyrighting music in India:
- Filing of application
To get started, you would first have to file an online application through the portal of a copyright attorney. Once the details of the copyright have been correctly filed in an appropriate form along with the prescribed fees, a diary number will get allotted to you.
- Formality check
After you have successfully filed the online copyright application, a formality check will be performed to make sure that the crucial requirement of 2 copies of the work is fulfilled. In case the application is accepted, you will move on to the next step.
- Standby period
The formality check phase would be followed by a standby period of 30 days. Within this period, any person can raise an objection who claims to have an interest in the copyright subject. In the event of no objection, the application would move ahead to the next step.
- Hearing
This step is relevant for only those applications that receive an objection. Under the fourth step, a letter would be issued to both the concerned parties and a hearing would be arranged at the registrar. In case the application gets accepted, it would get scrutinized by the examiner.
- Registration granted
In the final step, the registrar would review the application. If satisfied with the details, the application would be given the go-ahead, and the extracts would be communicated to the applicant.
How can you register your own music for a copyright?
In India, the copyright of music can be obtained through the provisions listed in the Copyright Act of 1957. To get your music copyrighted, you would first have to fill a Form XIV, the application form for copyright registration. Along with this form, you would also have to submit several documents, including a NOC from all the people that have contributed to the creation of your music (composers, lyricists, or others).
After you submit the above-mentioned documents and forms to the Indian Government’s Copyright website, you will have to wait for several days for the application to go through the various steps. If every criterion is met, your music would finally get copyrighted!
Copyright laws of India
We already know that unlike free music, copyrighted music cannot be ripped off, copied, or even used without the prior permission of the owner. However, there is a sleek way around this problem! Copyright music, which is available on public domains, can be used by anyone and everyone without inviting any legal troubles. Hence, copyrighted music for Indians can be accessed through public domains!
Can Beatoven help me?
Are you a budding musician looking to make royalty-free music? Then Beatoven music is the perfect tool for you! Powered by AI, it assists content creators to design original soundtracks. Moreover, with a wide collection of 16 moods and 5 genres, Beatoven music is ideal for Indian musicians who don’t have expertise in music theory but want to create engaging music.
So, if you are looking to make or find royalty-free music, make sure to try your hand at Beatoven music!
