The Delhi High Court banned an AI generated film using Akira Nandan’s likeness without consent, citing violations of privacy and personality rights. The court ordered an immediate takedown, warning that misuse of AI could cause irreparable harm to his reputation
Pawan Kalyan and son Akira Nandan
The Delhi High Court has restrained the broadcast and circulation of an AI generated film that allegedly exploited the name, personality and likeness of Akira Nandan, the son of Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister and actor Pawan Kalyan. The order was passed after Akira, also known as Akira Desai, approached the court citing serious violations of his privacy and personality rights.
All about the film
During the hearing, the court observed that the defendant Sambhawaami Studios LLP had created and uploaded a film of nearly one hour featuring Akira in the lead role without his consent or authorisation. The movie was promoted as the “world’s first global AI movie”. However, the court noted that no permission had been obtained from Akira or his family before using his likeness.
In its order, the court stated, “Plaintiff also claims that the AI morphing content portraying fabricated intimate or romantic scenes involving the plaintiff without any authorisation has already had, and has the potential to irreparably damage his name, image, goodwill and reputation resulting from the infringement of the copyright of his personality.” The bench stressed that misuse of artificial intelligence and deepfake technology could seriously infringe an individual’s moral rights, publicity rights and right to privacy.
Delhi High Court issues a statement
Justice Tushar Rao Gadela, in his order dated January 23, observed, “Upon overall appreciation of the facts of the case, prima facie, it appears that the plaintiff is a prominent personality belonging to a highly reputed family in the entertainment industry in the state of Andhra Pradesh.” The court further noted that the use of AI tools to create a fictional film around Akira’s persona clearly amounted to exploiting “his name, image, picture, personality and voice”.
Emphasising the gravity of the harm caused, the court said, “The irreparable injury and loss that the plaintiff may suffer, if no restraint orders are passed, would be irreparable, in as much as, a dent to the personality and the very image of the plaintiff can neither be measured in monetary terms nor be resurrected conveniently.”
The High Court granted immediate interim relief and ordered the takedown of the film from all online platforms. The defendants, including Sambhawaami Studios LLP and unidentified John Doe entities, were restrained from further exploiting Akira’s identity using artificial intelligence, machine learning or deepfake technology.
The court also directed social media platforms to remove all related content including clips, shorts and promotional material. It stated, “Defendant 3 Meta Platforms is directed to inform the user of the infringing URLs qua direction for take down in 72 hours, in case the user fails to take down the content, defendant 3 shall take down the said content.” Further hearings in the matter are scheduled for February 5.
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