New Delhi: Shatrughan Sinha, the veteran actor famous for his booming silentjust won a big battle in court. The Bombay High Court has slammed the door on anyone misusing his name, voice, or iconic line for online tricks or ads.
Fans love his angry dialogue from old films, but now websites and social media must delete fake content using his face or style right away. This sets a strong example for stars protecting their image in the AI age.
Court backs Sinha’s personal rights
The Bombay High Court ruled that silent is tied only to Shatrughan Sinha’s unique style. In its order on February 16, Justice Sharmila Deshmukh stated, “It needs no reinforcement that the expression ‘Khamosh’ which was delivered by the Plaintiff (Sinha) in his unique and distinct style in one of his films is associated exclusively with the Plaintiff’s persona.”
The court issued an interim order directing all websites and social media platforms to remove such content immediately and stop future uploads. It also barred the unauthorised use of Sinha’s name, images, voice, and other traits.
Why Shatrughan Sinha filed petition
Shatrughan Sinha, known as Shotgun, approached the court through lawyer Hiren Kamod to safeguard his personality rights. The plea highlighted misuse like fake endorsements, AI deepfakes, caricatures, and merchandise sold online without permission. These acts harm his reputation and steal his built-up goodwill from decades in films like Kalicharan (1976), where silent first boomed.
The court noted Sinha’s special dialogue delivery, especially his powerful silent style, which fans still mimic. It found prima facie proof of rights violation, privacy breach, and passing off.
Rising threat of digital misuse
The order pointed out how personality rights are under attack on digital platforms. “The personality rights… encompass the right to exclusive use of one’s own name, style, voice, personality, and so on, and with the advent of artificial intelligence, digital media have been uploaded with digital forgeries resulting in violation of personality rights,” the HC observed.
This trend worries many stars. Recently, Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai, Salman Khan, and others have fought similar cases against unauthorised use. Sinha seeks Rs 20 crore in damages and a permanent ban.
Next steps ahead
The court has scheduled the next hearing for March 30. Until then, platforms face strict orders to comply. Sinha’s win highlights the need for laws against AI fakes and the commercial exploitation of celebs’ personas.
This case protects not just Sinha but all artists from online copycats. Bollywood icons can now say silence to thieves stealing their fame.
Comments are closed.