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Context: Indian actors like Rajinikanth, Anil Kapoor, and Jackie Shroff have filed a lawsuit in the courts regarding their "personality rights" or publicity rights.

Personality Rights

• Personality rights, also known as publicity rights, are legal protections granted to individuals to control the commercial use of their name, image, likeness, voice, signature, and other identifiable features that contribute to their public persona.
• These rights are considered a subset of intellectual property rights and are often claimed by celebrities, public figures, and individuals with recognizable public identities.

Scope of Personality Rights

• Personality rights include various aspects of an individual's public identity, including their name, voice, signature, image, mannerisms, poses, and any other distinct features that are easily identifiable by the public.
• These rights are intended to protect the commercial value associated with a person's public persona and prevent unauthorized exploitation of their identity for commercial gain.

Legal Protection

• Personality rights are protected under laws related to privacy, publicity, and intellectual property.
• In some jurisdictions, celebrities may register aspects of their personalities, such as their name or signature, as trademarks to gain exclusive rights to use them commercially.
• Unauthorised use of a celebrity's likeness or identity for commercial purposes without their consent may constitute an infringement of their personality rights.

Indian Legal Framework

• In India, personality rights have been recognized and protected by courts under the broader framework of privacy rights, property rights, and intellectual property laws.
• Courts have held that credit over which a celebrity exercises exclusive control constitutes their personality rights and publicity rights.
• Unauthorized use of a celebrity's name, image, voice, or likeness for commercial purposes without their consent can infringe upon these rights and dilute the brand equity associated with the celebrity's persona.

Case Law Examples:

• The Delhi High Court has issued rulings protecting the personality rights of celebrities such as Jackie Shroff and Anil Kapoor. In these cases, the court restrained e-commerce stores, AI chatbots, and other entities from misusing the celebrities' names, images, voices, and likenesses without their consent.
• The court emphasised that the unauthorised use of these characteristics for commercial purposes not only infringes upon the celebrities' rights but also dilutes the brand equity built by them over the years.

Legal Mechanisms

• In cases involving infringement of personality rights, courts may grant injunctions to restrain the unauthorised use of the celebrity's identity for commercial purposes.
• Courts may also award damages or other remedies to compensate the celebrity for the unauthorised use of their identity and to deter future infringement.

Conclusion

• Personality rights are important legal protections that safeguard the commercial value associated with a celebrity's public persona. In India, courts have recognized and protected these rights through judgments that restrain the unauthorised use of celebrities' identities for commercial gain.

Must Read Articles:

Personality rights

Source:

Indian Express

Wikipedia

PRACTICE QUESTION Q. In which scenario would the Personality rights be violated? A) Using someone's image for educational purposes without permission. B) Using a celebrity's likeness for commercial gain without consent. C) Publishing an unauthorised biography about a public figure. D) Criticising a public figure's actions in a newspaper article. Answer: B