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Photographer drags Zee Media Corporation to court over unauthorised cheetah-footage use, seeks ₹18 Cr damages
Photographer Ronny Sen accuses Zee Media of using his exclusive cheetah-translocation footage without permission or credit, seeking ₹18 crore in damages in a case that could set an important precedent for creator rights.
A celebrated photographer and filmmaker, Ronny Sen, has filed a copyright-infringement suit against Zee Media Corporation Ltd, contending that the broadcaster aired his exclusive 12-second video of cheetahs being translocated to India without his permission, or credit.
The suit centres on a brief clip showing a cheetah inside its transport crate, footage Sen shot under contract with National Geographic in September 2022, while on board the aircraft that flew the big cats from Africa to India. Sen retained copyright of the video, which National Geographic published on its site on 13 September 2022.
Sen alleges that on 16 and 17 September 2022, coinciding with the release of the cheetahs into Kuno National Park, Zee News broadcast the footage and streamed it on YouTube, labelling it “super exclusive,” without obtaining any licence from him or acknowledging his authorship.
Grounding his argument in the Copyright Act, 1957, Sen claims that Zee’s actions violated both his economic rights (right to reproduce and license the work) and his moral rights (right to attribution). He is demanding ₹18.11 crore in damages, citing loss of licensing potential, degradation of artistic value, foregone OTT-documentary deals, and punitive damages for wilful misuse.
The case has been admitted by the Commercial Court at Rajarhat in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district, which issued notice to Zee on 27 November. The matter is listed for hearing on 16 January.
Sen has described the lawsuit as more than just a personal grievance, calling it a potential landmark fight for creators’ rights. He hopes a strong ruling will deter large media houses from exploiting work of independent artists without permission, payment or proper credit.
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