Bollywood actor Janhvi Kapoor has secured legal protection against the unauthorised use of her identity in obscene and pornographic material online, with the Delhi High Court ordering the removal of 552 objectionable URLs.
Kapoor filed a personality-rights lawsuit seeking action against 6,884 URLs, social media accounts and other online content that allegedly used her name, image or identity without permission. The material included pornographic content, fake accounts, AI-generated manipulated images, impersonation and commercial promotions.
The court, however, declined to impose a blanket ban on all the URLs, noting that such an order could be excessively broad.
A bench headed by Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani directed the material to be assessed in separate categories, including explicitly obscene or pornographic content, commercial exploitation of Kapoor’s personality rights, and promotions using her name or likeness to market products or services.
Following an initial assessment, the court identified 552 URLs containing highly objectionable and pornographic material allegedly featuring Kapoor without her consent. It found that she had established a strong prima facie case and ordered the concerned parties to remove the links promptly.
The court also refused to consider all fan pages using Kapoor’s name unlawful. It noted that such pages may contain legitimate material, including information about her films, performances, photographs, praise or criticism. Automatically blocking them could unjustifiably restrict freedom of expression.
The case also highlighted concerns over AI-generated deepfakes, fake social media profiles and the commercial misuse of Kapoor’s identity. The court stressed that such content must be assessed separately from legitimate fan activity.
Kapoor recently appeared in the Telugu film Peddhi alongside Ram Charan and Shivarajkumar.
