Filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma has reacted to the AI-morphed video featuring Janhvi Kapoor and Jr NTR’s song Chuttamalle from their 2024 film Devara: Part 1. The video, which allegedly depicts Janhvi in a sexually explicit and degrading manner, sparked a debate online and renewed concerns over the misuse of artificial intelligence to create manipulated content.
After Jr NTR and Janhvi condemned the deepfake, several celebrities, including Vijay Deverakonda, Chiranjeevi and Khushbu Sundar, also spoke out against the misuse of AI and the circulation of such content.
RGV Says Celebs’ Outrage Gave Janhvi Kapoor’s Chuttamalle AI Video More Visibility
Amid the controversy, RGV questioned the way celebrities responded to the incident. He argued that publicly discussing the manipulated video may have inadvertently drawn more attention to the offensive content. “The only thing all the celebrities succeeded in is to publicise and thereby make crores and crores of people see the objectionable link,” Varma said on X.
‘Smart Thing Would Have Been To Concentrate On Catching The Perpetrator’
He further stated that the focus should have been on identifying and catching the person responsible for creating and circulating the content.
“The smart thing would have been to concentrate on catching the perpetrator and publicise that,” he added. According to Varma, the celebrities’ social media posts brought “enormous attention” to the victim’s identity as well as the offensive material.
Janhvi Kapoor On Chuttamalle AI Video
Calling out the misuse of technology to objectify women, the actor said that circulating fictionalised content without consent is “deeply violating”.
Janhvi said that it was surprising that some people still failed to understand that consent must be respected at all times. She pointed out that even if a woman says yes on several occasions and says no on another, her “no” must be respected. She further stressed that a woman wearing a miniskirt does not give anyone permission to secretly film her, capture violating angles or visually exploit her body.
Janhvi added that what a woman is comfortable with, where she chooses to draw the line and what she decides to do with her body are exclusively her decisions. She described this as a basic principle that should be understood and respected.
Jr NTR was among the first to publicly condemn the video. He called the act “disgusting, sick and shameless” and said legal action should be taken against those responsible.