The Delhi High Court has ordered the takedown of AI-generated deepfake images and videos of Bollywood actor Varun Dhawan, restraining unauthorised merchandise sales linked to his likeness. The ruling follows a lawsuit filed by Dhawan against Artist Booking Company, Hire4Event, and e-commerce platforms including Iceposter, Amazon, Redbubble, and Desertcart for using his image and name without consent, according to medianama.com.
Dhawan's lawsuit alleged that Artist Booking Company and Hire4Event falsely offered bookings for his appearances and performances, infringing on his personality and publicity rights. The suit also identified Iceposter as a habitual infringer due to prior lawsuits by multiple celebrities over unauthorised merchandise sales. The complaint highlighted the use of AI to create misleading deepfake content, including pornographic material, exploiting Dhawan's identity for commercial gain, per medianama.com.
This case underscores challenges in India’s legal framework regarding personality rights, which are not explicitly defined in current legislation. While the Information Technology Act, 2000, and the 2026 Intermediary Guidelines address synthetic content like deepfakes and impersonation, the framework remains largely reactive. The ruling reflects growing judicial recognition of AI's impact on personal rights and the need for stronger protections against unauthorised use of celebrity likenesses, medianama.com reports.
The court’s order mandates the removal of all infringing AI-generated content and unauthorised merchandise linked to Dhawan’s image from the defendants’ platforms. This decision marks a significant enforcement action against AI-driven misuse of personality rights in India, setting a precedent for similar cases involving digital impersonation and synthetic media, according to medianama.com.