Celebrities' legal fight for intellectual property: A double-edged sword

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bhidu" and Anil Kapoor for "jhakaas"—concerns are rising over the potential impact on creative freedom and expression. Bhidu is a colloquial Mumbai usage, and Marathi, for bro or dude, that's also come to be used as a nickname for Shroff.

Jhakaas is Marathi for fantastic or superb, which caught on after Kapoor used the word in his 1985 hit movie Yudh. Experts caution that the trend of celebrities seeking intellectual property rights for such phrases and other common traits could stifle content creators, leading to self-censorship for fear of legal repercussions.

This would also have implications for platforms such as Instagram and X, which would have to strengthen monitoring of AI images and videos impersonating celebrities as well as the use of any content associated with the rich and the famous. “Aggressive enforcement of personality rights by celebrities can certainly lead to self-censorship, pervading fear of being involved in protracted litigation, and consequent financial repercussions," said Swati Sharma, partner and head of intellectual property at law firm Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas.

“If the courts were to adopt an overtly liberal approach in granting personality rights to celebrities, it will result in a significant reduction of creative content and stifle legitimate freedom of expression," Sharma said. The Delhi High Court recently issued orders protecting the personality and publicity rights of Shroff and Kapoor, barring the use of Shroff's name, sobriquets such as "Jackie" and "Jaggu dada", as well as his voice and image for commercial purposes without his consent.

In September, the court restrained 16 online entities from infringing upon Kapoor's personality rights, including the use of jhakaas. Personality