Bollywood actor Hrithik Roshan has approached the Delhi High Court seeking legal protection against the unauthorised commercial use of his identity, joining a growing list of celebrities taking steps to safeguard their personality and publicity rights.
Roshan’s petition, filed before Justice Manmeet Pritam Arora, seeks to prevent misuse of his name, image, likeness, voice, and other personality attributes. The plea names several known and unknown parties, including unnamed individuals referred to as John Does, who allegedly exploited the actor’s identity for commercial gain without authorization. The matter is scheduled to be heard on Wednesday.
The actor has requested the court to grant an injunction that would block the unauthorized use of his identity both online and in advertisements, aiming to protect his image from exploitation or defamatory content.
Roshan’s move comes days after veteran playback singer Kumar Sanu filed a similar petition, alleging that morphed videos and defamatory content featuring his name and likeness were circulating across digital platforms. In Sanu’s case, the court had earlier directed tech giants Meta and Google to explain why URLs containing such content could not be removed by their grievance officers.
The petitions highlight the increasing concerns among public figures regarding online misuse, identity theft, and defamation and underscore the legal recourse available under personality and publicity rights protections.
With the court set to hear both cases, the proceedings are expected to shape how Indian courts deal with unauthorised commercial use of celebrity images and voices in the digital era.
