Amitabh Bachchan Files A Lawsuit For His Personality Rights

Amitabh Bachchan Files A Lawsuit For His Personality Rights

Indian actor, producer, host, occasional playback vocalist, and former politician Amitabh Bachchan is well recognised for his work in Hindi cinema. He is recognised as one of the most popular and significant performers in Indian film history. In recognition of his contributions to the arts, the Indian government awarded him the Padma Shri in 1984, the Padma Bhushan in 2001, and the Padma Vibhushan in 2015. 

His extraordinary career in film and beyond earned him the highest civilian honour bestowed by the French government, the Knight of the Legion of Honor, in 2007. Additionally, Bachchan appeared in Baz Luhrmann's 2013 Hollywood production The Great Gatsby as Meyer Wolfsheim, a non-Indian Jewish character.

The veteran actor has filed a lawsuit with the Delhi High Court to preserve his rights to his name, voice, image, and personality. According to the news agency ANI, renowned attorney Harish Salve appeared on behalf of the megastar of the Indian film business. The 80-year-old actor had filed a complaint, stating that numerous people, including the person behind a "KBC lottery," had taken advantage of his "publicity rights as a star" to defraud the public. The court's decision followed that lawsuit. In response to his request, Justice Navin Chawla stated that it is undeniable that Bachchan is a well-known figure and that, if relief is not given at this time, he will likely suffer an irreparable loss and reputation.

According to the court, the actor has established a claim for relief at this point, hence it is appropriate to issue an ad interim ex parte order of injunction. The defendants looked to be leveraging Mr. Bachchan to promote their own endeavours without his knowledge or consent, the court further observed. "The plaintiff is therefore likely to suffer grave irreparable harm or injury to his reputation. In fact, some of the activities complained of may also bring disrepute.”

The court ordered telecom authorities to intervene to shut down websites that were hosting content that went against Bachchan's rights. Additionally, it instructed telecom service providers to prevent users from calling phone lines that are used to send illegal messages. The date for deliberation was set for March of the following year.

On behalf of the actor, senior attorney Harish Salve stated that Bachchan was requesting an injunction not just against the parties listed in the lawsuit but also against "john doe" parties, or unidentified persons, who might be abusing Bachchan's publicity rights. Attorneys Ameet Naik and Pravin Anand represented Bachchan before the high court. Salve countered that in addition to the lottery, the actor has domain names registered in his name, a business called "Amitabh Bachchan Video Call," and even t-shirts with his image on them.

Bachchan claims in his lawsuit that no one else is allowed to "utilise," "misappropriate," or "imitate" any aspect of his personality or "exploit the same commercially" without his consent or express authorization. He claims that only he can exercise "control over commercial utilisation of his personality, name, voice, image, likeness and other characteristics that are uniquely identifiable and associated.” 

The plaintiff's persona's components have a significant commercial value attached to them, and the case claimed that if any defendant were to be found employing any of them, it would confuse and deceive the general public, and result, in the lawsuit, the defendant will have to pay the damage of Rs. 2 crores. 

It has been informed that one of the defendants is allegedly using the actor's image to promote "KBC lotteries" in WhatsApp messages, misleading the public into thinking that "Kaun Banega Crorepati" was giving away lottery prizes to the general public. The plea further alleges that another defendant is marketing a general knowledge quiz book featuring Bachchan to people who want to audition for the quiz show on television.