Kangana Ranaut moves Delhi High Court over obscene AI-generated content

What happened

Actor and BJP MP Kangana Ranaut has approached the Delhi High Court to block the spread of sexually explicit, AI-generated content and fake news circulating about her online.

On Thursday, Justice Vikas Mahajan issued summons to the defendants named in Ranaut’s lawsuit, which seeks to protect her personality and publicity rights. The judge indicated that the court would consider granting an interim order to halt the distribution of the offending material.

The case against explicit deepfakes

Ranaut’s legal team told the court that the targeted content includes pornographic graphics, fabricated news stories, and deepfakes that falsely attribute statements to the politician and actor. While her lawyers acknowledged that satirical memes and other objectionable parodies are also floating around, they clarified that they are not asking the court to block satirical content at this interim stage.

At the same hearing, the court took up a similar personality rights case filed by Telugu star Vijay Deverakonda. The judge issued summons to the defendants in his case as well, promising to consider an interim order to protect his identity from exploitation.

Deverakonda’s lawyers argued that third parties have been commercially exploiting the actor’s likeness without his permission. They pointed to unlicensed merchandise being sold under his name, alongside AI-generated social media posts, impersonation, fake endorsements, and the use of abusive language.

Who else is involved

The dual lawsuits highlight a growing legal battleground in India over digital identity, likeness, and the ease with which generative AI tools can create convincing fakes. Public figures are increasingly turning to the courts to establish boundaries around their "personality rights"—a legal concept that prevents the unauthorised commercial or defamatory use of a person's name, voice, signature, or likeness.

The Delhi High Court has become the central venue for these disputes. It has already granted interim protection to a long list of public figures who have sued to protect their digital identities.

Those who have previously won similar orders include actors Salman Khan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, and Abhishek Bachchan, Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan, cricketer Abhishek Sharma, journalist Sudhir Chaudhary, podcaster Raj Shamani, and spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.

In those cases, the court restricted unauthorised users, platforms, and tech companies from using the celebrities' names, voices, or likenesses for commercial purposes or in a manner that damages their reputation. Ranaut and Deverakonda are now seeking the same shield as AI technology makes the fabrication of convincing media simpler and more widespread.