Who we are
This website, halawi.org, is operated by Halawi Media Private Limited (CIN U59111RJ2024PTC094405), a film, video and media production company in India that works with clients in India and abroad (“Halawi Media”, “we”, “us”).
For the purposes of India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (“DPDP Act”) we are the Data Fiduciary for the personal data described in this policy. For visitors from the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom and similar jurisdictions, we act as the controller of that data.
What this policy covers
This policy explains what personal data we collect when you visit our website, contact us, use our cost estimator or apply to work with us, why we collect it, who we share it with, how long we keep it and the rights you have. It does not cover the websites of third parties that we link to.
Where you sign a project agreement with us, that agreement may contain additional terms about confidentiality and the data we handle while producing your project.
Information we collect
Information you give us
- Contact and project inquiry form: the service you are interested in, your name, email address, phone number (optional) and the details you share about your project, such as timeline, budget, links or a summary from our cost estimator.
- Email, phone and messages: anything you choose to send us when you write to or call us.
- Job and casting applications: details you send when you apply as cast or crew, such as links to your reel, portfolio or resume.
- Billing: when you pay us by bank transfer or UPI, we receive the payment reference and payer details your bank shares with us. We do not collect or store card numbers or your banking passwords on this website.
Information collected automatically
- Analytics: we use Google Analytics 4 (measurement ID G-F4R9XCKJ4R) to understand how visitors use the site. It records pages viewed, approximate location (city or country, derived from your IP address), device and browser type, the site that referred you and events such as form submissions and clicks on “Get an exact quote”. See Cookies and analytics.
- Technical details sent with the inquiry form: to route and qualify inquiries, the form also sends the page address, the referring page, any campaign (UTM) tags in the link you followed, your browser language, screen size, platform, approximate device memory and browser user agent.
- Server and security logs: our hosting and form-processing providers may log IP addresses and request details for security and abuse prevention.
Cost estimator
The cost estimator runs entirely in your browser. The choices you make are not sent to us unless you click “Get an exact quote”. That button opens our contact form with a summary of your choices already filled in, and you can edit or delete that summary before you send it.
How we use your information
- To reply to your inquiry, prepare proposals and quotes, and discuss your project.
- To deliver the services you engage us for, including scheduling, production, invoicing and support.
- To review job and casting applications.
- To understand and improve our website, content and services using aggregated analytics.
- To keep the website and our systems secure and to prevent spam and misuse.
- To meet legal, accounting and tax obligations, and to establish or defend legal claims.
We do not use your personal data for automated decision-making that has legal or similarly significant effects on you. We only send marketing emails if you have asked for them, and every such email lets you unsubscribe.
Why we are allowed to use it
Under the DPDP Act, we process personal data on the basis of your consent (for example, when you submit our form or send us your details) and for legitimate uses permitted by the Act, such as processing data you have voluntarily provided for a specific purpose and complying with the law. You can withdraw consent at any time (see Your rights). Withdrawal does not affect processing that took place before it.
For visitors covered by the GDPR or UK GDPR, we rely on: taking steps at your request before entering into a contract, and performing that contract; our legitimate interests in responding to inquiries, running and securing our business and understanding how our website is used; consent, where the law requires it, including for non-essential cookies; and legal obligations.
Cookies and analytics
Google Analytics sets first-party cookies named _ga and _ga_F4R9XCKJ4R. They distinguish visitors and sessions and usually expire after up to two years. Google processes this data on our behalf under its own terms and privacy policy. Detailed analytics data is kept for no longer than 14 months.
You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings, or install the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on. The website works normally without analytics cookies.
Embedded YouTube videos. Our showcase uses YouTube’s privacy-enhanced mode (youtube-nocookie.com), and the player only loads after you click play. Once it loads, Google may set cookies or similar technologies and collect information about your viewing under Google’s privacy policy. Clicking a video link that opens youtube.com takes you to YouTube’s own site.
Fonts and media. Our pages load web fonts from Google Fonts and our showreel from our own media server (delivered through Cloudflare). These requests share your IP address and browser details with those providers so the files can be delivered.
How we share information
We do not sell or rent your personal data, and we do not share it for third-party advertising. We share it only as needed with:
- Service providers that process data on our behalf: website hosting, form processing (our inquiry form is delivered through a Cloudflare Workers endpoint), email and communication tools, Google Analytics, and accounting or banking providers.
- Production partners, such as crew, cast, studios, editors or post-production facilities working on your project, and only the details they need to do that work.
- Professional advisers, such as lawyers, auditors and accountants, under a duty of confidentiality.
- Authorities, when the law requires it, or to protect our rights, our clients, or the safety of others.
- A successor business, if Halawi Media is involved in a merger, acquisition or sale of assets. Your data would remain protected by this policy or one that is at least as protective.
International transfers
We are based in India and serve clients worldwide. Some of our service providers, including Google and Cloudflare, may process data in other countries, such as the United States. Where we transfer personal data outside India, we do so in line with the DPDP Act and any restrictions notified under it. Where we transfer personal data from the EEA or UK, we rely on appropriate safeguards offered by our providers, such as standard contractual clauses.
How long we keep it
- Inquiries that do not become projects: up to 24 months after our last contact, so we can follow up on the same conversation, then deleted.
- Client, project and billing records: for as long as needed to deliver the project and then for the period Indian company and tax laws require (generally up to eight years).
- Job and casting applications: up to 12 months, unless you ask us to keep you on our roster for longer.
- Analytics: according to the retention period set in Google Analytics, no longer than 14 months for detailed data.
When data is no longer needed, we delete it or make it anonymous.
How we protect it
We use reasonable security safeguards appropriate to the nature of the data, including encrypted (HTTPS) connections, limited access on a need-to-know basis, reputable service providers and measures that reduce automated scraping of our contact details. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure. If a personal data breach occurs that affects you, we will notify you and the relevant authorities as the law requires.
Your rights
Under the DPDP Act, you have the right to:
- get a summary of the personal data we process about you and how we process it, and the identities of those we have shared it with;
- have inaccurate or incomplete data corrected, completed or updated, and have data erased when it is no longer needed, unless we must keep it by law;
- withdraw your consent at any time, as easily as you gave it;
- have your grievances addressed by us, and if you are not satisfied, complain to the Data Protection Board of India;
- nominate another person to exercise your rights if you die or become incapacitated.
If you are in the EEA, the UK or another region with similar laws, you also have the right to access your data, correct it, erase it, restrict or object to our processing (including processing based on legitimate interests), receive your data in a portable format, withdraw consent, and complain to your local data protection authority.
To use any of these rights, email us at our email address (shown on our contact page) with the subject “Privacy request”, or use our contact form. We may need to confirm your identity before acting on a request. We aim to respond within 30 days, and in any case within the time the law requires. We will not charge you for a reasonable request.
Children
Our website and services are intended for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under 18 without verifiable consent from a parent or lawful guardian. Casting or job applications for anyone under 18 must be submitted by a parent or guardian. If you believe a child has sent us personal data without that consent, please contact us and we will delete it.
Links to other websites
Our website links to other websites, including film industry organizations on our resources page, our social media profiles and YouTube. We are not responsible for how those websites handle your data. Please read their privacy policies before you share information with them.
Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time to reflect changes in the law, our services or the tools we use. We will post the updated version on this page and change the effective date at the top. If the changes are significant, we will take reasonable steps to let you know.
Contact us
For any question, request or complaint about this policy or your personal data, email us at our email address (shown on our contact page) with the subject “Privacy request”, or reach us through our contact page. We will acknowledge your message and respond as quickly as we can.