The Indian government has no proposal under consideration presently to regulate use of artificial intelligence in the media and entertainment sector, especially in the film-making processes, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L. Murugan said in Rajya Sabha or Upper House yesterday.

Replying to a question from a fellow parliamentarian on the issue of increasing use of AI tools in film and media scriptwriting, including for generating dialogues, storylines and screenplays in the Indian film industry, the Minister admitted the government was aware of the trend, but added there was no thinking of any regulations at present.

“At present, there is no proposal under consideration to regulate the use of AI in filmmaking and scriptwriting through an amendment to the Cinematograph Act, 1952,” Murugan said in a written reply to an unstarred question.

The Indian M&E industry has taken to AI with great gusto; sceptics notwithstanding. So much so that celebrated filmmaker Shekhar Kapur at various public platforms has revealed jocularly that his cook used AI to develop a script for a possible sequel to his classic film, ‘Mr. India’.

At the recently-concluded International Film Festival of India in Goa, during a masterclass, Kapur narrated the story of his cook using AI to generate a script to highlight how AI was making filmmaking more accessible to ordinary people.

India’s biggest OTT platform in terms of subscriber numbers, JioHotstar, is currently streaming a version of ‘Mahabharat’, which is said to be totally AI-enabled.

Clarification On AI Band Trilok: While replying to a separate question in Rajya Sabha on another issue related to artificial intelligence, Murugan clarified that national broadcaster Prasar Bharati had not formally partnered with AI-generated music band Trilok.

A parliamentarian had asked the government details relating to Trilok’s partnership with the national broadcaster, including whether Prasar Bharati had a formal pact with Trilok for broadcasting content on Akashvani, Doordarshan and OTT platform, WAVES OTT apart from the monetary allocation for this collaboration and any recurring annual commitment.

“Prasar Bharati has not partnered or entered into any agreement with AI-generated music band named ‘Trilok’ for broadcasting content on Akashvani, Doordarshan or its OTT platform WAVES.

“A few AI-created devotional songs were telecast on Prasar Bharati network, including WAVES OTT platform, during Durga Navratri Festival this year. This was done on a pilot basis without any monetary or recurring commitment,” the Minister said.

(The image is for representation purpose only)