The Delhi High Court granted interim protection to singer Jubin Nautiyal, restraining AI platforms and websites from unauthorized use of his name, voice, image, and likeness, and directing removal of infringing links, videos, apps, and online content.
NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court has issued an interim ruling safeguarding the personality and publicity rights of singer Jubin Nautiyal.
In an order, Justice Tushar Rao Gedela directed several AI platforms, websites, and e-commerce portals to refrain from unauthorized use of Nautiyal’s name, voice and vocal style, singing manner, as well as his image and likeness.
The court also mandated the blocking or removal of links, videos, websites, and mobile apps that infringe Nautiyal’s personality rights.
Nautiyal had approached the court alleging that some generative AI and machine-learning tools were being used to clone his voice, imitate his singing style, and produce digital avatars and deepfake content without his authorization. The filing highlighted instances of face morphing, synthetic voice models, and unauthorized chatbots built around his persona.
Following argument, the court noted that the harm to Nautiyal’s image and personality appeared real and present.
The Court observed.
“In the considered opinion of this Court, the plaintiff has a prima facie strong case and having regard to his well-known, popular and well-accepted personality, the balance of convenience is tilted in favour of the plaintiff. In case, ex-parte ad-interim injunction and other directions, as sought, are not passed, the irreparable loss and injury which may occasion may not be compensated in monetary terms,”
Accordingly, the court barred infringers from exploiting or misappropriating the singer’s personality traits for commercial or personal gain across all mediums, including websites, social media platforms, and the metaverse.
The order also prohibits the creation or dissemination of AI-generated voice models, digital avatars, caricatures, and other content that imitates Nautiyal.
During the hearing, the court had questioned Nautiyal’s decision to file the personality-rights suit in the Delhi High Court, asking how the court would have jurisdiction given his Uttarakhand base and the fact that some defendants were located in Romania and the UAE.
Advocates Vivek Vidyarthi, Suvigya Vidyarthi, Sarvagya Vidyarthi, Nischay Chaudhary, Apoorva Singh, Rushali Rawat, and Samriddhi Shukla appeared for Jubin Nautiyal.
Case Title: Jubin Nautiyal v Jammable Limited & Ors
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