Delhi High Court rules on celebrity personality rights

The Delhi High Court has issued significant rulings regarding the protection of personality rights for prominent Indian actors.

In a recent decision, the court restrained the unauthorized use of actor Vijay Deverakonda’s name, image, and voice. This protection specifically includes safeguards against artificial intelligence (AI), deepfakes, and face-morphing technology. Justice Vikas Mahajan directed social media platforms including Meta, Google, and X to remove infringing content, such as videos and accounts that misuse his persona. The court also ordered online marketplaces and domain registrars to take down identified infringing links and suspend specified domains within 72 hours.

In a separate ongoing matter, the Delhi High Court has directed veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan to appear personally if he intends to proceed with his personality rights lawsuit. Filed in 2022, the suit seeks a permanent injunction against the unauthorized commercial exploitation of his name, image, and voice. Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav noted that Bachchan’s presence is essential to finalize or formalize settlements with certain defendants.