Shah Rukh Khan's recently released film Zero has become the latest victim of online piracy as illegal sites have opened gates to download the full movie or online streaming for free. The movie also stars an ensemble cast of Anushka Sharma, Katrina Kaif, Tigmanshu Dhulia, Abhay Deol, R Madhavan, Sheeba Chaddha, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub and many others.
The illegal sites have released Zero full movie download links with 1080p or 720p HD quality prints from unofficial servers. The movie has taken a good start at the box office. The full movie download is likely to hit the film's box office collection to a large extent.
Some of the pirated copies seems to have been shot from a handy camera with average print quality while some have made HD quality prints available.
Zero has opened to mixed reviews (mostly negative) from critics and audience alike. The movie is expected to collect Rs 20-25 crore on the opening day because of the immense buzz. The negative word of mouth may further hamper the occupancy in theatres.
However, this is not the first time a Bollywood movie has been hit by piracy. Earlier, movies like Thugs Of Hindostan, 2.0, Race 3, Sanju and other movies have also been leaked online which affected their overall box office performance at the domestic market.
Bollywood industry has been trying hard to stop the piracy of films for the past several decades. Some filmmakers and producers with the help of cybersecurity forces have managed to block sites that allow online users to download the latest Bollywood movies that get released almost every week.