Music Director Ilaiyaraaja has accused the Indian Performing Rights Society (IPRS) of defrauding him of royalties. At a recent event attended by musicians and performers from all over Tamil Nadu, Ilaiyaraaja alleged that the society had “cheated” him many a time.
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The IPRS issues licenses to performers – orchestras and others – and collects royalties from them on behalf of music composers and publishers. It deducts administrative costs from its revenue before paying music publishers. Ilaiyaraja has accused the IPRS of not paying him the royalties he is owed; claiming that he is paid less than 10% of the money that is collected from the performers. As a consequence, he announced that he has quit the IPRS with immediate effect.
He added that going forward performers can decide how much royalty they want to pay, and pay him directly through his office.