The Delhi High Court has ruled in favour of actor and parliamentarian Jaya Bachchan, granting her protection against the unauthorised use of her name, image, and likeness online. The order, passed by Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora on November 10, 2025, comes after Bachchan filed a plea stating that her photographs and videos were being misused on digital platforms without her consent.
In her petition, Jaya Bachchan highlighted that several social media accounts, YouTube channels, and websites had been circulating her images and using her identity to promote content or products — all without permission. Her legal team also flagged the disturbing rise of AI-generated content, including manipulated videos where her face and voice were falsely recreated to make it appear as if she had spoken or appeared in them.
Recognising the seriousness of the issue, the court observed that such acts amounted to a violation of an individual’s personality and privacy rights, and warned that strict action would follow against anyone found guilty of exploiting her identity. However, Justice Arora clarified that authentic film memorabilia, such as posters from the 1973 classic Abhimaan featuring Jaya and Amitabh Bachchan, could continue to be sold legitimately, since they form part of the film’s original marketing material and do not constitute misuse.
This ruling adds to a growing line of judgments from the Delhi High Court aimed at safeguarding the personality rights of public figures. The court’s consistent stance reflects an urgent need to address the misuse of celebrity identities in the age of artificial intelligence and deepfakes, where fabricated visuals and false endorsements can spread rapidly online.
With this decision, the court reaffirms that an individual — whether a film icon or any public figure — retains the fundamental right to control the commercial and digital use of their persona. As AI-generated content blurs the boundaries between real and fake, such rulings mark a crucial step toward defining the limits of consent, creativity, and digital ethics in India’s evolving media landscape.
