Samantha Ruth Prabhu has received interim relief from the Bombay High Court over the unauthorised use of her name, image and voice online. The court has ordered the takedown of objectionable content, including AI-generated deepfakes and morphed material involving the actress. Justice Madhav Jamdar passed the interim order on Thursday after Samantha approached the court seeking protection of her personality and publicity rights. Her petition raised concerns over the misuse of her identity across websites, social media platforms and other digital services.
During the hearing, Samantha’s advocate Rashmin Khandekar pointed out several forms of alleged misuse. These included morphed photographs, deepfake videos, AI-generated voice clips, obscene content and interactive AI chatbots using the actress’s identity. The court was also informed about the use of her image and other personality traits without authorisation. The Bombay High Court observed that the material placed before it prima facie showed violations of Samantha’s personality, publicity and moral rights. The court noted that these rights are connected with her fundamental rights including privacy and human dignity. Her moral rights as a performer are also protected under Section 38B of the Copyright Act.
Samantha is currently on a maternity break and she will get back to work next year.