Jackie Shroff opens up on Delhi High Court’s order protecting his
It was reported a few days ago that Bollywood’s ‘Bhidu’ Jackie Shroff, had filed a lawsuit to protect his identity and image rights. After receiving a complaint against the unapproved use of the actor’s name, voice, photos, and distinctive phrase ‘Bhidu,’ the Delhi High Court issued an injunction safeguarding the actor’s reputation and rights to publicity.
Now days after, the veteran actor released an official statement expressing his gratitude towards the judiciary over the decision. Jackie Shroff expresses gratitude towards Delhi High Court for protecting his personality rights
He said, “I am immensely grateful to the judiciary for passing an order that safeguards my personality rights, including my name, image, likeness, voice, and other unique attributes.”
“For a long time, celebrities had little to no recourse against the misuse of their persona. However, I am heartened by the fact that courts have progressively recognised and protected these rights, as demonstrated in landmark cases involving Amitabh Bachchan and Anil Kapoor. These precedents have been very encouraging and motivated me to assert my rights,” he further added.
The Welcome To The Jungle actor further highlighted how it was important to take cognizance of the unauthorised use and misuse of the celebrity attributes in the world of ever evolving technology and social media age. He asserted his point stating, “Celebrities wield significant influence, and such abuse can mislead the public regarding a celebrity’s association with certain goods or services. The misuse of celebrity personas not only dilutes our brand equity but also misguides the public at large.”
The veteran actor credited the Delhi High Court for acknowledging the need of protecting the personality rights of celebrities, considering their wide reach to the masses. “This protection extends to all forms of media, including digital platforms, and specifically prohibits the use of AI, deep fakes, GIFs, AI chatbots, and similar technologies to exploit my persona without my explicit permission,” he said.
On a concluding note, he stated that protecting his personality rights was important to preserve the ‘authenticity’ and ‘respect’ that has been associated with the work he has done his entire life.
“It also protects my fans from being misled by unscrupulous elements of society. I thank the judiciary for their support in this regard,” he wrote on a concluding note.
