Delhi HC restrains entities from using actor Jackie Shroff's name, voice without permission

The Delhi High Court has restrained various entities from using actor Jackie Shroff’s name, including sobriquets “Jackie” and “Jaggu Dadda”, voice and images for commercial purposes without permission.

The Delhi High Court has restrained various entities from using actor Jackie Shroff's name, including sobriquets "Jackie" and "Jaggu Dadda", voice and images for commercial purposes without permission.

Justice Sanjeev Narula, in an interim order dated May 15, said the entities selling wallpapers, T-shirts and posters, etc. on e-commerce websites and operating an artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot platform were prima facie acting in violation of the actor's personality and publicity rights by exploiting and misappropriating his attributes.

The judge also passed the direction against two content creators who published videos of Shroff with "extremely profane words and abuses".

The court said Shroff is a celebrity and this status inherently grants him certain rights over his personality and associated attributes.

"The plaintiff has established a prima facie case for grant of an ex-parte injunction. Balance of convenience lies in his favour and against defendants no. 3-4, 6-7, 13 and 14. If an injunction is not granted in the present case, it will lead to irreparable loss/harm to the Plaintiff, not only financially but also with his right to live with dignity," the court observed.

"It becomes evident that the alleged activities of some of the defendants have, on a prima facie basis, resulted in commercial benefits through the unauthorised exploitation of the plaintiff's personality. Such defendants have utilised the plaintiff's name, image, voice, and other unique characteristics without permission, thereby infringing on his personality and publicity rights," it said.

The court issued notice to certain other entities with respect to alleged violation of his rights, including a YouTube content creator hosting an allegedly derogatory video and a restaurant owner using the registered trademark "Bhidu" for his outlet.