Author: Laxmi Mishra, Delhi Metropolitan Education affiliated to GGSIPU
“The Price of being Known: Celebrity Image Rights in India”
Abstract
Celebrities in the age of technology have become personal brands, and their persona that is their name, voice, image, and likeness that has emerged as a commodity. But misuse of a celebrity’s persona commercially is a grave issue from the legal perspective. India does not have any particular statutory law for personality rights, but judicial activism has worked in creating protection under the principles of constitutional law, tort law, and intellectual property law. The legal limits of celebrity image rights in India are examined in this article by comparing important rulings, legislative gaps, risks posed by modern technologies like artificial intelligence.
Introduction: To the point
Celebrity rights, refer to the legal protections that cover the commercial exploitation of celebrity’s identity. These rights are with everyone, but these rights are particularly essential for public personalities whose image is connected to commercial endorsements, reputations, and public perception, including actors, musicians, sportsmen, and influencers. Any unauthorized usage of celebrity identities has become more prevalent than ever before because of AI clones, deepfakes, and digital theft.
In India there is no specific legislation to address this issue. This article examines how Indian Courts have enforced the rights of celebrities images and the extent to which the law remains wanting.
Use of Legal Jargon
It’s important to know some essential terms in law in order to comprehend how courts and legal experts interpret celebrity image rights. These frequently appear in court decisions and serve as the basis for arguments in these kinds of situations.
- Personality Rights: These rights generally protect the names, voice, image, signature from commercial use. Though not formally codified in Indian law, courts have developed protections based on constitutional and tort law.
- Right to Publicity: This right allow the public celebrities to control how their persona is used for commercial benefit. Any unauthorized use can lead to legal claims for damages.
- Right to Privacy: Article 21 grants Right to Privacy to everyone and specially to the public figure, this right allows the individual to control over their personal details, images, shielding it from any misuse.
- Passing off: Originally a trademark doctrine, it is now used to stop misrepresentation of celebrity endorsement. If a brand falsely suggests a celebrity endorses them, it’s a classic case of passing off.
- Injunction: This is the legal remedy through which a court orders a party to stop infringing conduct—in this case, to stop using a celebrity’s image or persona without permission.
The Proof
What Are Personality Rights?
In terms of a property or privacy right, personality rights refer to an individual’s capacity to protect their identity. Since their names, pictures, or even voices may be improperly used in advertisements by other companies to boost sales, celebrities cherish these rights. Therefore, celebrities and all the famous people need to register their names to safeguard their personal rights.
Here are few examples through which understanding the Celebrity right and how does it protect their persona will be easy:
- Amitabh Bachhan Voice misuse (2022): Individuals and companies were imitating Amitabh Bachhan’s voice through AI to promote lotteries and mobile apps without his consent. He had filed a suit in the Delhi High Court to get protection for his “voice and image rights”. The court issued an interim injunction against using his persona unauthorized.
- Ranveer Singh Deepfake Video (2024): A deepfake video of Ranveer Singh criticising particular Political party went viral before elections. His legal team issued a statement of legal action for fake endorsement.This case shows how AI and deepfakes are creating fake videos and voices which is concerning and infringing the personality rights of the celebrity, and famous people. This shows that there is need of strict laws that can control all these activities.
Protection Of Personality Rights Under IPR, Constitution of India, Tort Law
The Indian Copyright Act, 1957
The Copyright Act’s Section 57 safeguards the unique rights of writers, including artists’ personal rights. According to Section 38 of the Copyright Act, the performer is the exclusive the owner of the performance and is in complete control of its recording and reproduction.
Article 21 of the Constitution- Right to Privacy
The “Freedom of the Press” guaranteed by Article 19 of the Indian Constitution allows for the collection and publication of any information on celebrities that is deemed to be of “public interest” or “public concern.” Public leaders and celebrities have protested this since it violates their right to privacy and their private lives. Every individual is entitled to safeguard both their own lives and their public image. Without the individual’s consent, a third party shouldn’t be able to regulate how their identity is utilized for business.
Article 21 of the Constitution recognized privacy as a fundamental right in the case of Judge K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India, AIR 2017 SC 4161. Anyone who uses someone else’s identity without that person’s permission is considered to have infringed that person’s personality rights as well as their fundamental right to privacy, which is an extension of liberty and the “right to be left alone.”
Tort Law
Indian courts have invoked the tort of passing off—traditionally used in trademark law—his time to prohibit commercial exploitation of celebrity image without permission. Misrepresenting a person as endorsing a product amounts to misrepresentation and unconscionable enrichment.
Legal Remedies and Punishment for misuse of Celebrity
- Injunction: An injunction is one of the most common remedies awarded by courts in image rights cases. It is a legal order restraining the infringing party from continuing or repeating the unauthorized use of a celebrity’s name, photo, voice, or likeness. Courts may grant:
- Temporary Injunction – granted at the initial stage of litigation.
- Permanent Injunction – granted after the final judgment to stop further misuse.
- Damages or Compensation: The affected celebrity may be awarded monetary compensation for: Loss of reputation, Emotional distress, Financial harm (loss of endorsement opportunity), Misleading the public
Case Laws
- Titan industries v. M/S Ramkumar jewellers, 2011
The Delhi High Court in this case ruled that, “When a prominent person’s name is exploited in advertising without their knowledge, the objection isn’t just about that no one should commercialize them; instead, individuals ought to be able to control the timing and manner in which their identity is used. The right to publicity refers to the authority to control how one’s identity is used for profit.
- DM Entertainment v. Baby Gift House & Ors (2003)
In this case, dolls with the name and likeness of singer Daler Mehndi were used without permission. The Court maintained his personality rights, acknowledging that famous people have the right to make money off of their notoriety and shield others from unfair enrichment.
- R Raja Gopal v. State of Tamil Nadu, (1994) :
Supreme Court decision, Without the prisoner’s consent, a magazine attempted to publish Auto Shankar’s memoirs.
The Supreme Court recognized that publishing private information without permission violates people’s right to privacy. This case established the constitutional foundation for privacy, which is essential to image rights, even if it did not specifically address celebrity rights.
Conclusion
The legal recognition of celebrity image rights in India is a developing but undeveloped field. Although courts have taken the initiative to define rights using well-established legal principles, the absence of a complete statute leads to ambiguity and uneven application of the law. Given social media, artificial intelligence, and the rising economic importance of personal identity, India needs to pass a specific Personality Rights Act immediately. Such a provision must strike a suitable balance between freedom of expression, consumer protection, and the financial interests of celebrities in the globalized, electronic age.
FAQS
- Are personality rights protected under Indian law?
Yes, though there is no specific law but courts have protected them using constitutional rights, tort law (passing off), and intellectual property principles.
- Can a person use a celebrity’s image for memes or fan pages?
Non-commercial and satirical uses may be protected under free speech. However, if the use is misleading or for profit, it could infringe the celebrity’s rights.
- What is the punishment for infringing celebrity image rights?
Remedies typically include injunctions, damages, and account of profits. There is no criminal punishment unless misrepresentation or fraud is involved.
