Recently, Delhi HC protected Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev’s personality rights.

Background

• Sadhguru faced misuse of his personality traits by unknown entities using AI to create objectionable content and commercial exploitation without consent.
• The suit sought protection against deepfakes, manipulated images, videos, and voice alterations circulating on social media platforms and rogue websites.

Court’s Key Observations & Orders

• Uniqueness of Personality: Court recognized Sadhguru’s voice, signature, image, articulation style, and attire as unique attributes deserving legal protection.
• Danger of AI Misuse: Highlighted that AI-driven misuse can spread rapidly like a “pandemic,” causing uncontrollable damage to personality rights and public perception.
• “Hydra-headed” Rogue Websites: Identified the problem of websites that, even if blocked, reappear as mirror or alphanumeric variants, complicating enforcement.

About Personality Rights

• It refers to the legal rights that protect the unique attributes of an individual’s personality — such as their name, image, voice, likeness, signature, and other identifiable characteristics — from unauthorized commercial exploitation or misuse. 
  • These rights primarily apply to celebrities and public figures whose persona has commercial or reputational value.
• Core Principle: Only the individual who owns or has created these unique personal traits has the exclusive right to derive monetary benefits or control their use. 
  • Unauthorized use by others, especially for commercial gain, constitutes infringement.
• Types:
  • Right of Publicity (similar to trademark use):  Right to keep one’s image and likeness from being commercially exploited without permission.
    • Governed by Trade Marks Act 1999 and the Copyright Act 1957
  • Right to Privacy: Right to not have one’s personality represented publicly without permission.

Judicial Precedents Relating to Personality Rights

• Amitabh Bachchan Case (2012 & 2022): Delhi HC issued injunctions preventing unauthorized commercial use of Bachchan’s name, nicknames, and expressions.

• Rajnikanth Case (2015): Madras HC ruled that Rajnikanth’s name and style are protected celebrity personality rights, barring unauthorized use in a film title.
• Anil Kapoor Case (2023): Delhi HC granted an ex-parte omnibus injunction against multiple entities misusing Kapoor’s image, name, and AI-generated likeness for profit.
• Jackie Shroff Case (2024): Delhi HC protected Shroff’s personality rights by restraining misuse by e-commerce stores, AI chatbots, and social media, while balancing freedom of expression by refusing to take down artistic videos.

Legal Framework in India

• Constitutional Basis: Personality rights are grounded in Articles 19(1)(a) (freedom of speech and expression) and 21 (right to life and personal liberty), ensuring a balance between expression and privacy.
• Copyright Act, 1957: Grants moral rights to performers, allowing them to prevent distortion or unauthorized use of their performance or persona.
• Trade Marks Act, 1999: Restricts unauthorized commercial use of personal names and symbols under Section 14.
• Judicial Precedents: Cases like K.S. Puttaswamy (2017) have elevated privacy rights, reinforcing personality rights as fundamental rights under Article 21.