Citibank accused of 'direct copy' of film by Indian production, legal action taken

Indian production house Matheno Films has sent a legal notice to Citibank India for "copying" its 2017 short film Cup of Tea. According to India's local media outlet afaqs,?Jitendra Rai, director and producer of Matheno Films said in a statement the bank was issued a legal notice that he claims is a "direct copy" of the 2017 short film.

Matheno Films worked with marketing agency Schbang for the film, and partnered with NGO Mukul Madhav Foundation to promote awareness of education in the rural parts of India. The Cup of Tea film has acclaimed several local and international awards ever since its release two years ago.

In a statement to Marketing, a Schbang spokesperson said Cup of Tea as?a short film has a copyright to its name, and the Citibank Diwali commercial has "straight out lifted the?idea/narrative and reproduced" the film. "This leads to copyright infringement and plagiarism," the spokesperson added.

The spot revolves around a lady photographer in the woods capturing snippets of nature on her camera, and a young village boy runs off with her unattended bag. The film zooms in on both individuals running and captures the mischievousness of the boy. Towards the end of the film, the boy stops and the lady sees the whole village crowding around her with a chalkboard in hand. The residents were hopeful that a modern lady would teach them to read and write. Watch the film here:

Meanwhile, the Diwali film by Citibank has a similar story line to Cup of Tea. Titled "Spread more cheer this Diwali", the spot features a young lady purchasing a few slices of cake. A young boy closely watches as the storekeeper places the cake box on the side, which the boy leaps to grab and run. The lady chases after the boy (and where the director zooms in on the two's feet similar to a scene on Cup of Tea). In another scene, the film also shows the boy sneakily hiding from the lady.

The Citibank film however, builds up to showcase sharing happy moments together as it was revealed that the young boy stole the cake slices for his friend's birthday. Here's Citi's film:

In afaqs' article,?Schbang's founder and MD Harshil Karia said the agency looks to create consciousness in the society through this legal action. Marketing has reached out to Schbang and Citibank India for comment.