Collaborative enforcement effort by Penguin Random House India, Simon & Schuster India and Hay House targets retail piracy network in Hyderabad
Hyderabad, July 2026; As part of the ongoing nationwide anti-piracy enforcement campaign, Penguin Random House India, in collaboration with Simon & Schuster India, Hay House and a team of investigators, initiated enforcement action with Hyderabad’s Abids Police against the sale of pirated books at the Hyderabad Sunday Book Market.
The coordinated retail-level raid, conducted on 12 July 2026, resulted in the seizure of 336 pirated books comprising titles belonging to Penguin Random House India, Simon & Schuster India and Hay House. Four people found selling infringing copies were apprehended and arrested, and FIR No. 220 of 2026 was registered against the accused.
The operation was undertaken after market surveillance and intelligence gathering revealed that multiple retailers in the Hyderabad Sunday Book Market were openly displaying and selling pirated editions of bestselling Indian and international titles. The market was identified as a visible retail distribution point for pirated books in Hyderabad, with copies sourced from different suppliers and sold directly to the public.
Among the seized titles were unauthorized copies of popular and bestselling books across the lists of Penguin Random House India, Simon & Schuster India and Hay House, including Atomic Habits by James Clear, Thinking Fast & Slow by Daniel Kahneman, Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari, Arundhati Roy’s Mother Mary Comes to Me and The God of Small Things, Lallan Sweets by Srishti Chaudhary, The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins, Colleen Hoover’s It Ends with Us and It Starts With Us to name a few.
Commenting on the raid, Sanjiv Gupta, Managing Director, Simon & Schuster India, said, “Piracy is not limited to large warehouses or hidden printing presses. It also survives through visible retail points where counterfeit books are sold openly to unsuspecting readers. This action in Hyderabad is an important step in addressing piracy at the market level. We are grateful to the officers of the Abids Police Station, Hyderabad, for their swift action and to our publishing partners for continuing to work together in protecting authors, publishers and the integrity of the book trade”.
Manoj Satti, SVP, Product, Sales and Marketing, Penguin Random House India, said, “A pirated book may look like a cheaper purchase, but it comes at a real cost. Readers often receive poor-quality copies, authors lose rightful earnings, and the entire publishing chain that brings a book to market is undermined. When a reader buys a genuine book, they are supporting the author, the publisher, the bookseller and the future of good publishing. This operation is a reminder that piracy is not a bargain, it is a breach of trust”.
Building on the earlier anti-piracy actions undertaken in Delhi, this Hyderabad operation reinforces the need for sustained, industry-wide collaboration. Penguin Random House India, Simon & Schuster India and Hay House remain committed to working with enforcement agencies, investigators and publishing stakeholders to identify, disrupt and act against piracy networks across the country.
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About Penguin Random House India
Penguin Random House India is the country’s leading trade publisher, publishing over 450 new titles every year and managing a diverse backlist of more than 3,500 books. Our publishing spans literary and commercial fiction, non-fiction, and children’s books — from politics, history, memoir, and business to health, self-help, cookery, and culture.
We are home to some of India’s and the world’s most celebrated voices — including winners of the Nobel Prize, Booker Prize, Jnanpith Award, and Sahitya Akademi Award. Several of our authors have also been honoured with the Bharat Ratna and Padma Vibhushan, reflecting the influence of their work in literature and public life.
Penguin Random House India also serves as the exclusive distribution partner for several major international and local publishers, bringing books to readers across India and the subcontinent.
MEDIA CONTACT-
Pallavi Narayan | pnarayan@penguinrandomhouse.in | +91 97118 64445