Mohak Mangal exposes how ANI asked for Rs 45 lakh to remove copyright strikes. Top Indian YouTubers are now uniting to protect creators from unfair copyright pressure.
Indian content creator Mohak Mangal, who makes deep and informative videos on national issues, business, and geopolitics, recently shared something that shocked the entire creator community. He released a video titled “Dear ANI, I am Mohak, I am not scared”, where he talked about how @ANI (Asian News International), one of India’s top news agencies, gave him copyright strikes on two of his videos.
The first copyright strike was on a video he made in May about the Kolkata rape case. In that 16-minute video, he used an 11-second clip from @ANI. The second strike came recently when he uploaded a video about Operation Sindoor, where he used a 9-second @ANI clip in a 38-Minute video.
Now, here’s the big problem. On YouTube, there is a rule called Fair Use. It means that if you are using a short part of someone else’s video for educational, news, or commentary purposes, and you add your own thoughts or explanation, then it is allowed. Many big YouTube channels, like music labels, don’t give copyright strikes—instead, they take the ad revenue from the video where their clip is used. But what @ANI did was completely different.
After getting two strikes, Mohak and his team decided to talk to an ANI employee to understand what was going on. That’s when things got even more shocking. The ANI employee told them clearly: if they wanted the strike removed and to use @ANI videos in future, they would have to pay Rs 45 lakh plus GST for a one-year subscription. After a lot of back and forth, ANI gave two options—either pay Rs 40 lakh for strike removal and a 2-year video usage deal, or pay Rs 30 lakh for a 1-year subscription.
Imagine being an individual YouTuber and being told to pay lakhs of rupees just for using a few seconds of a video that was already in the public domain. It’s not just unfair — it feels like a direct threat to creators who are doing serious, informative work. Even the Indian government encourages creators to spread awareness and information through YouTube and social media. So when a big news agency like @ANI acts this way, it sends a very disturbing message.
After all this, Mohak decided to speak up and made a video sharing the full story. That video went viral quickly and got over 3.5 million views in just one day. Many popular YouTubers like Nitish Rajput, Thugesh, Peepoye, Kunal Kamra, Tanya Khanijow, and Labour Law Advisor came forward to support him. @ Thugesh said that ANI asked him for Rs 15 lakh just for using a 2-second video clip.@ Nitish Rajput said YouTube should take strong steps to protect creators who have spent years building their channels. If YouTube doesn’t act, many creators might lose everything they’ve worked for.
Mohak also sent an email to the I&B ministry and Cabinet Minister @Ashwini Vaishnaw, asking him to look into this matter. Creators are now asking for rules that protect fair use, especially when the purpose is to educate or inform the public.
This issue is bigger than just one YouTuber. It’s about how fair and safe the platform is for creators. Yes, creators should give credit or pay when using someone’s content—but the cost should be reasonable. Charging lakhs of rupees for a few seconds of a news clip is not right, especially when the goal is to inform people.
Now, more and more creators are uniting and raising their voice against this unfair treatment. What Mohak started is now becoming a movement—and it’s a strong reminder that creators deserve respect, support, and fairness.