The Delhi High Court on December 22, 2025, stepped in to protect the personality and publicity rights of actor and Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan, passing a detailed interim order against the unauthorised commercial use of his name, image, voice, and likeness. The court restrained several online platforms, sellers, and AI-based websites from exploiting his identity without consent and directed immediate takedown of infringing content.
Background of the Case
The suit was filed by Mr. Konidala Pawan Kalyan alleging large-scale misuse of his personality rights across e-commerce platforms, websites, social media, and artificial intelligence tools. According to the plaint, unauthorised sellers were offering merchandise such as T-shirts, posters, and accessories bearing his name and images, while certain AI platforms enabled users to generate synthetic voices, images, and conversations imitating him.
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Senior advocate J. Sai Deepak, appearing for the plaintiff, told the court that these activities were misleading the public into believing that Mr. Kalyan had endorsed or approved such products and content. Several unidentified entities were also involved, prompting the inclusion of “John Doe” defendants.
Court’s Observations
Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora noted that Pawan Kalyan is a widely recognised public figure with substantial goodwill built over decades in cinema and public life. The court observed that his name, image, voice, and likeness carry clear commercial value and are legally protectable.
“The plaintiff has, over the years, acquired distinct proprietary rights in his personality attributes,” the bench observed, adding that unauthorised exploitation for commercial gain prima facie violates those rights.
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Relying on earlier Delhi High Court rulings on celebrity rights, the court held that the unauthorised sale of merchandise and AI-enabled imitation of a public figure’s identity cannot be permitted without consent.
The court recorded that major online marketplaces had been used to sell unauthorised merchandise, while some AI platforms enabled voice replication and image generation in the plaintiff’s name. Certain social media accounts were found impersonating the plaintiff, though the court distinguished between misleading impersonation and long-standing fan pages.
On this point, the bench said that fan accounts may continue only if they clearly disclose that they are unofficial. “A disclaimer stating that the account is a fan page is essential to avoid public confusion,” the court said.
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The Court’s Decision
Granting ex-parte ad-interim relief, the High Court restrained identified infringing defendants and unknown entities from using Pawan Kalyan’s name, image, likeness, or voice for any commercial purpose, including through artificial intelligence tools, without his consent.
E-commerce platforms were directed to delist infringing products and share seller identification details. AI platforms were restrained from facilitating the creation of synthetic content using the plaintiff’s identity. Social media platforms were ordered to ensure compliance by impersonation or fan accounts, failing which such accounts could be made inactive.
The court concluded that continued availability of the infringing content would cause irreparable harm and that the balance of convenience clearly favoured the plaintiff. The matter will be reviewed again after compliance reports are filed.
Case Title: Konidala Pawan Kalyan v. Ashok Kumar (John Doe) & Ors.
Case No.: CS(COMM) 1336/2025
Case Type: Commercial Suit – Personality & Publicity Rights
Decision Date: 22 December 2025
