Bollywood actress Preity Zinta has received permission from the Bombay High Court to institute a suit against Google LLC, Meta and several other entities over alleged misuse of her identity through AI-generated deepfakes, manipulated images, chatbot personas and other digital content.According to Live Law Biz, justice Abhay Ahuja on Tuesday granted Zinta leave to file the proposed suit before the Bombay High Court and subsequently disposed of her petition.
Suit alleges infringement of personality and copyright rights
Appearing for Zinta, advocate Rohan Kadam submitted that the proposed suit seeks an injunction against the respondents for allegedly violating the actor’s personality rights, copyright, goodwill and reputation.According to the submissions made before the court, the respondents had allegedly “created, uploaded, disseminated and made available to the general public” AI-generated deepfake videos, memes, manipulated images, chatbot personas and other forms of digital content that infringed upon Zinta’s rights.The proposed suit alleges infringement of personality rights, copyright and moral rights under the Copyright Act, 1957.
Actor claims damage to goodwill and reputation
Kadam informed the court that Zinta is an Indian national who primarily resides and works in Mumbai. He argued that her goodwill, reputation and persona are situated within the jurisdiction of the Bombay High Court.The court also recorded submissions that the allegedly infringing content was not only being circulated in Mumbai but was accessible globally through online platforms.The advocate further contended that while a part of the cause of action arose within the jurisdiction of the Bombay High Court, several respondents had offices located outside its territorial jurisdiction and the alleged violations were taking place on internet-based platforms.
Court grants leave under Clause XII
After examining the leave petition and the proposed plaint, Justice Ahuja held that the request deserved to be allowed.Granting the relief sought by the actor, the court ordered: “That this Hon’ble Court be pleased to grant leave under Clause XII of the Letters Patent to enable the Petitioner to file the present Suit in this Hon’ble Court.”With the order, Zinta has now been permitted to formally pursue her civil action against the respondents before the Bombay High Court.
Growing concerns over AI-generated content
The development comes amid increasing concerns globally over the misuse of artificial intelligence to create deepfake videos, digitally manipulated images and AI-generated personas that can imitate public figures without their consent.Zinta’s proposed lawsuit adds to a growing list of legal challenges involving celebrities seeking protection of their personality rights and digital identities in the age of generative AI.
