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The Indian Supreme Court has affirmed that it will prevent any improper use of Jackie Shroff’s image, name, and voice to protect his personality rights.
Recently, the Delhi High court has passed an injunction order protecting the personality and right to publicity of actor Jackie Shroff and showing e-commerce sites, chatbots of Artificial Intelligence as well as social media accounts from commercial misuse of actor’s name, sayings or image for selling or advertisement purposes without consent of the actor [Jaikishan Kakubhai Saraf alias Jackie Shroff v
Interim order from Justice Narula about May 15 also directed incidental links be pulled out and if extreme in nature had used words of Shroff.
As for the Court, Shroff had obtained a celebrity status who could now claim some rights with regard to his personality and individuality. The defendants were for some of them using his name, image, voice etc. without any permission therefore, infringing on his personality and publicity rights.
Along with it, the Court also sent the notice to several other defendants, name a gif making platforms, a restaurant with the name ‘Bhidu’, and others who were alleged of their infringements into the personality rights and misuse of his persona.
At the outset Shroff’s attorney had prayed for the pass of an injunction against them but the counsel said that before he does so, he must review their reply.
On the other hand, in that stage, the Court denied an order to take down a video called ‘Jackie Shroff is Savage, Jackie Shroff Thug Life’ that featured on a YouTube channel by ‘Thugesh’ because they did not represent the same thing. In the video that has been certified viral the Shroff interview segments have been taken up from the previous ones with Thug Life as the caption and the inclusion of new visuals.
Justice Narula talked about the video as an art form and how restrictions would be a change that goes much deeper than this narrow case.
This could not only jeopardize the freedom of expression, but it could also serve as a precedent that hinders the public from expressing themselves and choosing not to exercise their legal right to speak without being worried about possible legal troubles.
It is one again agenda on October 15 of the same month.
While making the plea Shroff asked for the protection of both Jackie Shroff, Jackie, Jaggu Dada, as well as Bhidu. He also said that he is the only person who has the right to use his set of attributes and for this he should be paid authorisation on any platforms.
Through court proceedings, Shroff sought the remedy for his voice, image, likeness as well as for all characteristics of his general personality that are unique and thus “the unauthorized utilization of which by others is likely to prevail in societies and in their minds the confusion and misapprehension”.
According to him, the several social media firms, brick and mortar outlets, social media platforms accounts, as well as the AI usage don’t have his prior permission and not only amass wealth from this unauthorised use but also leave confusions and fatally damage his image.
However, he echoed the view that unauthorized exploitation of any elements of his personality without his consent for commercial purposes is a matter which should not be allowed on the basis of the conventional understanding of the range of publicity rights along with the chance of copyright for dilution of personality.
Also worth noticing is that by September 2022, a High Court Prohibitory Order protected celebrity rights of the actor Amitabh Bachchan, that were violated by people at large.
Bachchan was entitled to seek a no-cost order under Omnibus Scheme, whereby any use of his name, voice, performance or other physical attributes for commercial gains without his consent would be banned.
Another case (Kapoor v. Union of India) was referred to a special leave on a petition for the same issue.
Advocates for the petitioner in Supreme Court include Pravin Anand, Ameet Naik, Dhruv Anand, Madhu Gadodia, Udita Patro, Rinku Gajria, Sampurnaa Sanyal, Sujoy Mukherjee, Ashotosh Upadhyaya, Nimrat Singh, Tarini Kulkarni and Dhananj
For defendant number one, advocate’s Shikha Sachdeva, Kriti Rathi and the experience of Annie Jacob stood in support.
Sharing the spot is the defendant’satriot Sharat Kapoor, Shubh Kapoor, Anirudh Dusaj and the noble Bhavyah Garg attending the trial of the retail arm of Frankly private limited.
Tenor Inc also had a team of lawyers – Shruttima Ehersa, Rohan Ahuja,Diva Viswanath and Rahul Choudhary that represented defendant no 10 in the court.
Speakers Mr. Aditya N. Mahajan and Ms. Kara R. Aggarwal were the counsel for convicted number 14, Zedge Inc.
