Veteran star Jackie Shroff recently filed a plea in the Delhi High Court against the unauthorized use of his name, voice, images, and signature phrase ‘Bhidu.’ The Delhi High Court has now issued an order safeguarding the actor’s personality and publicity rights, as reported by Indian Express. The court has banned various social media accounts, AI chatbots, and e-commerce websites from exploiting Shroff’s name, voice, or likeness for commercial purposes without his explicit consent.
In an interim order dated May 15, Justice Sanjeev Narula acknowledged that the details in Jackie Shroff’s lawsuit clearly establish his status as a celebrity. “This status inherently grants the plaintiff certain rights over his persona and associated attributes,” stated the high court. The court also recognized the actor’s trademark registration for the term ‘Bhidu.’
The high court noted that Shroff’s commercial endorsements leverage his unique attributes such as personality, name, voice, image, likeness, mannerisms, gestures, and other identifiable characteristics. These attributes, under the sole control of the plaintiff, constitute his ‘personality rights’ and ‘publicity rights.’ The court further stated that unauthorized commercial exploitation of these traits not only infringes upon these rights but also undermines the brand value Shroff has built over time.
The defendant entities include e-commerce platforms selling merchandise like posters, mugs, and T-shirts featuring the actor’s image, as well as AI chatbots. The high court issued notices to these entities, instructing them to refrain from violating the actor’s personality rights until the next hearing date.
Additionally, the court examined a YouTube video by a content creator, which compiled various interviews of Shroff, highlighting his reactions and prominently displaying his face digitally altered with a gold chain, sunglasses, and the caption ‘Thug Life.’
Jackie Shroff’s decision to pursue this plea follows similar legal actions taken by actors like Anil Kapoor and Amitabh Bachchan to protect their personality rights.
