Hundreds of AI-generated Bollywood videos, amassing 16 million views, have been removed from YouTube after a legal challenge by Bollywood couple Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan over the violation of their intellectual property rights. The couple has filed a lawsuit asking a New Delhi judge to take down and prevent the creation of such AI videos that infringe on their rights. Their legal action also targets YouTube’s AI training policy.
Although a judge had ordered the removal of several specific videos last month, Reuters reported this week that many similar AI-generated videos were still available on the platform. Some of these videos involved AI manipulations, such as kissing scenes or romantic interactions featuring celebrities and their lookalikes. One popular channel, known for posting “AI-generated Bollywood love stories,” had uploaded 259 videos, some of which were sexually explicit. This channel, which had garnered 16.5 million views, was removed, with the link now displaying a message that says: “This page isn’t available.”
In response to the controversy, YouTube stated in an email to Reuters that the channel in question had been deleted by its creator and the videos are no longer accessible. The platform clarified that it has strict policies against harmful misinformation and removes content that is misleading due to manipulation or doctored images.
The email address associated with the now-deleted channel @AIbollywoodishq returned a bounce-back message on Friday, and the creator did not respond to Reuters’ queries earlier in the week. With India being YouTube’s largest market, boasting around 600 million users, Bollywood entertainment content is especially popular.
One of the most-viewed videos on the removed channel, with 4.1 million views, featured an AI animation of Salman Khan and Aishwarya Rai in a swimming pool. This AI-created content was particularly controversial given their past relationship before Aishwarya’s marriage. Neither Khan’s nor the Bachchans’ representatives have responded to Reuters’ requests for comment.
