Bombay High Court Orders Immediate Takedown of Content Misusing Shilpa Shetty’s Image

The Bombay High Court has ordered the immediate removal of online content that allegedly misused the image of actress Shilpa Shetty Kundra. The Court observed that no person can be portrayed in a way that harms their right to privacy and dignity, especially without consent.

A vacation bench led by Justice Advait M. Sethna passed the interim order while hearing Shetty’s personality rights suit. The Court directed social media platforms, AI-related entities and unknown parties (John Doe defendants) to take down links, posts, images and videos that appeared to be morphed or manipulated.

The judge described the content as disturbing and said its continued circulation could seriously damage Shetty’s reputation. The Court stressed that allowing such material online would violate her fundamental right to live with dignity under Article 21 of the Constitution.

While granting interim relief, the Court clarified that the broader legal questions around personality and publicity rights under intellectual property laws would be examined later by a regular bench. For now, the Court said it was necessary to protect Shetty’s privacy and dignity.

During the hearing, Shetty’s counsel argued that her photographs and persona were being used without permission to promote products such as sarees, which also amounted to copyright violation. The Court noted these arguments but kept the larger legal issues open for detailed consideration.

This case comes at a time when many Indian celebrities are approaching courts to protect themselves against AI-generated deepfakes, manipulated content and unauthorised commercial use of their identity.