Megha Balani recommends "ReMastered:The Lion's Share"

From the mind of Megha Balani (Director - Strategy & Development, Global Music Institute)

Hey Megha! We'd love a bite sized introduction:

A passionate workaholic who cannot sit idle, rarely rolls her eyes but doesn’t mind rolling up her sleeves and getting her hands dirty.  Somehow gets pulled into / attracted to situations that require getting the basics in order. Also weirdly a micromanager, multi - tasker and an enabler at the same time.

Currently contributing to the growth of twins - one human (baby girl) and another, a home to musical humans (GMI) - both happened to take on their current avatars at the same time.

Megha recommends the 2019 docu-film, "ReMastered: The Lion's Share" directed by Sam Cullman, and featuring South African journalist, Rian Malan. Here's why.

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This seems like quite an interesting film – how did you find out about it? Was it recommended to you by someone or did you just stumble onto it? It was one of those Netflix and chill moments late in the evening when the toddler had gone off to sleep and, watching something overruled sleeping. I am more of a non-fiction buff so the documentary section of Netflix is my favourite go-to section, and it was during one of those random explorations that I chanced upon this documentary.

What about the film really stood out to you? What’s a powerful takeaway from the film?

I was glued to the movie from the start. As you know, one of the recent additions to our programs at the Global Music Institute has been the introduction of our course on Music Business. Given the nature of the industry in India as well internationally and the lack of proper channels of information as well intent, it is quite a challenging and a complex area to not only study but also teach. The documentary explores the legal battle ensuing in the music industry over a song more familiar to our generations through the famous series ‘Friends’ and the movie ‘The Lion King’ – a song called “The Lion Sleeps Tonight”. It’s sort of a David vs Goliath battle, spanning across decades and interwoven with multiple socio-economic and political factors.

Why and who do you think should give this a watch?  

If someone wants to have a practical understanding of the concepts of copyrights, publishing, contracts, legal representations, royalties and the like, this documentary perfectly demonstrates all of that in the intimidating backdrop of a very real life scenario. For a musician, it might feel more like a music business hack 101 or a lesson in the top 10 things you need to watch out for. Having said that, it leaves one feeling a myriad of emotions across the spectrum ranging from hope to despair, wonder to amazement.

Here's a sneak peak of what to expect:

Watch and Learn is a series where creative professionals delve into their personal stash of beloved and interesting movies, podcasts and books to bring you recommendations that are equal parts entertaining and educational.