Netflix appoints former Balaji Telefilms exec as its first IP lawyer in India
Netflix Entertainment Services India LLP has appointed former Balaji Telefilms Limited Vice President and Senior Counsel- Legal Ms. Priyanka Chaudhari as the Director and Senior Counsel- Intellectual Property for the Indian territory.
In her current role at Netflix she will be the first content IP lawyer in India for Netflix to be responsible to take the lead in India and collaborate with the creative, business and legal affairs and other teams to acquire and develop intellectual property and guide them through production and distribution.
Priyanka will also serve as an internal, cross-functional expert on all areas of IP law in India, manage claims of IP infringement at the pre-litigation stage, create and implement production clearance strategies for Indian content and advice on complex rights acquisitions and grants.
Prior to this, Priyanka has worked with Bharti Axa Life Insurance Company, Star India, Zee Entertainment. At Balaji Telefilms, she led the legal and regulatory affairs, including movies, OTT services, and television.
The news of her appointment comes in the same week as the exit of Simran Sethi, one of the key Netflix executives overseeing original content in India. Last year in December, another Indian executive Swati Shetty, Former Director for International Originals and Acquisitions had also stepped down from the company. The company is now searching for Shetty’s replacement who will likely be based out of Mumbai.