<p>A controversy raged earlier this week over the poster of ‘Dvitva,’ a film that is bringing together three big names: actor Puneeth Rajkumar, producers Hombale Films, and director Pawan Kumar.</p>.<p>The furore threw the spotlight on the use of stock images, and the question of originality.</p>.<p>Soon after the poster was released, it was accused of plagiarism, and designer Adarsh Mohandas and Pawan had to explain to fans how it all came about.</p>.<p>Pawan says it is a common practice to buy stock images, but he completely understands people's sentiments. “This was an unfortunate incident due to a miscommunication between Adarsh and me,” he told <em>Showtime</em>.</p>.<p>“For the audience, when such a big team makes a film, it’s not a movie, it’s an identity. ‘Lucia’ was talked about not just for its storytelling and making. The film became an identity for a lot of Kannadigas. In the same way, the poster of ‘Dvitva’ was a visual representation of unique content for movie buffs. So as soon as they saw a similar image, they were hurt. It doesn’t matter to them if it was legally bought or not,” offers Pawan.</p>.<p>The controversy sparked discussions on the art of poster designing. Adarsh says he has learnt a lesson from this episode. “In this case, the film’s photoshoot wasn’t done because of pandemic constraints. I was only given the concept. Since this was a big project, the safest option was to use a legitimate image. I didn’t feel the need to inform the team because I didn’t foresee a situation like this,” he explains.</p>.<p>Amateur designers across fields often borrow images from free websites. They manipulate the image and blend it with different elements to make it appear unique.</p>.<p>“Stock photographs are expensive,” says Adarsh. “But big design firms working for films and advertisements subscribe to stock photo providers.”</p>.<p>Many Indian films have notoriously copied posters. But fans should remember there is a big difference between plagiarism and coincidence, says Adarsh.</p>.<p>“I faced this predicament when I designed the poster of ‘Lucia’," he recalls. “Bhargav Saikia, an independent filmmaker, was upset that it had striking similarities to his film's (‘Kaafiron Ki Namaz’) poster.”</p>.<p>The team then showed Saikia the complete workflow of the ‘Lucia’ poster. “I had all the versions. They were convinced that it was a case of pure coincidence. So as a designer, it’s important to have your work history intact,” says Adarsh, the man behind posters of ‘U Turn’ and ‘Katheyondu Shuruvagide’.</p>.<p>Filmmakers are turning to digital painting and illustrations to design first-look posters during the pandemic. “If a photoshoot isn’t possible due to pandemic rules, these are the options. Also, it’s a challenge to find stock images that match the nativity of the state. Sometimes, in unprecedented situations, designers even take pictures of a particular actor’s previous films and work on them to produce something new,” he says. </p>
<p>A controversy raged earlier this week over the poster of ‘Dvitva,’ a film that is bringing together three big names: actor Puneeth Rajkumar, producers Hombale Films, and director Pawan Kumar.</p>.<p>The furore threw the spotlight on the use of stock images, and the question of originality.</p>.<p>Soon after the poster was released, it was accused of plagiarism, and designer Adarsh Mohandas and Pawan had to explain to fans how it all came about.</p>.<p>Pawan says it is a common practice to buy stock images, but he completely understands people's sentiments. “This was an unfortunate incident due to a miscommunication between Adarsh and me,” he told <em>Showtime</em>.</p>.<p>“For the audience, when such a big team makes a film, it’s not a movie, it’s an identity. ‘Lucia’ was talked about not just for its storytelling and making. The film became an identity for a lot of Kannadigas. In the same way, the poster of ‘Dvitva’ was a visual representation of unique content for movie buffs. So as soon as they saw a similar image, they were hurt. It doesn’t matter to them if it was legally bought or not,” offers Pawan.</p>.<p>The controversy sparked discussions on the art of poster designing. Adarsh says he has learnt a lesson from this episode. “In this case, the film’s photoshoot wasn’t done because of pandemic constraints. I was only given the concept. Since this was a big project, the safest option was to use a legitimate image. I didn’t feel the need to inform the team because I didn’t foresee a situation like this,” he explains.</p>.<p>Amateur designers across fields often borrow images from free websites. They manipulate the image and blend it with different elements to make it appear unique.</p>.<p>“Stock photographs are expensive,” says Adarsh. “But big design firms working for films and advertisements subscribe to stock photo providers.”</p>.<p>Many Indian films have notoriously copied posters. But fans should remember there is a big difference between plagiarism and coincidence, says Adarsh.</p>.<p>“I faced this predicament when I designed the poster of ‘Lucia’," he recalls. “Bhargav Saikia, an independent filmmaker, was upset that it had striking similarities to his film's (‘Kaafiron Ki Namaz’) poster.”</p>.<p>The team then showed Saikia the complete workflow of the ‘Lucia’ poster. “I had all the versions. They were convinced that it was a case of pure coincidence. So as a designer, it’s important to have your work history intact,” says Adarsh, the man behind posters of ‘U Turn’ and ‘Katheyondu Shuruvagide’.</p>.<p>Filmmakers are turning to digital painting and illustrations to design first-look posters during the pandemic. “If a photoshoot isn’t possible due to pandemic rules, these are the options. Also, it’s a challenge to find stock images that match the nativity of the state. Sometimes, in unprecedented situations, designers even take pictures of a particular actor’s previous films and work on them to produce something new,” he says. </p>