Court Grants Permanent Injunction, Recognizes Lawful Settlements, and Extends Relief Against Defaulting and Anonymous Defendants Exploiting Amitabh Bachchan's Persona
In a significant judgment delivered on November 5, 2026, the Delhi High Court, presided over by Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav, affirmed the protection of celebrity publicity rights by issuing a decree in favor of renowned actor Amitabh Bachchan against multiple defendants accused of unauthorized commercial exploitation of his name, image, and likeness. The suit, registered as CS(COMM) 819 of 2022, was instituted to restrain the misappropriation of the plaintiff's publicity rights, prevent passing off, and claim damages.
The plaintiff, Amitabh Bachchan, alleged that several defendants used his identity without consent through various commercial mediums including a mobile application named `Amitabh Bachchan Video Call', WhatsApp promotional messages for a `Kaun Banega Crorepati' lottery, a general knowledge quiz book featuring his image on the cover, T-shirts, wall posters, and domain names such as amitabhbachchan.com and amitabhbachchan.in.
During the course of proceedings, four defendants (Nos. 1, 3, 5, and 8) entered into a lawful settlement with the plaintiff. They acknowledged Bachchan's publicity rights and his right to privacy, agreed to cease all infringing activities, including deleting the mobile app and discontinuing publication and sale of offending materials, and undertook not to use his persona in the future without express permission. The Court, invoking Order 23 Rule 3 of the Civil Procedure Code (CPC), passed a decree confirming the compromise, binding these defendants and their legal heirs to the agreed terms.
On the other hand, defendants Nos. 2, 4, 6, and 9 failed to appear or file written statements despite being served summons. The Court, after careful consideration and relying on precedents including Asma Lateef v. Shabbir Ahmad and Titan Industries Ltd. v. Ramkumar Jewellers, invoked Order 8 Rule 10 CPC to decree the suit against these defaulting defendants. It was held that the plaint disclosed no disputed factual questions warranting trial and that the unauthorized use clearly infringed the plaintiff's right to publicity - the right to control commercial use of one's identity.
Additionally, the judgment extended the decree against the John Doe defendants (Defendant No. 10), representing unidentified persons who continued anonymous misuse of Amitabh Bachchan's persona via websites, applications, posters, and messaging platforms. The Court's interim injunction from November 2022 was merged into the final decree, empowering enforcement against these anonymous infringers and allowing the plaintiff liberty to initiate fresh proceedings upon new causes of action.
This landmark ruling reinforces the legal position that celebrities have enforceable publicity rights protecting their persona from unauthorized commercial exploitation. It also clarifies procedural aspects related to decrees on compromise and summary judgments against defaulting defendants in commercial suits.
The suit is now decreed against all defendants either through lawful settlement or default judgment, thereby providing Amitabh Bachchan comprehensive relief and setting a precedent for similar cases involving personality rights and unauthorized commercial use.
Bottom Line:
Personality/publicity rights - Celebrity is entitled to protection against unauthorized commercial use of name, image, likeness and persona - Suit can be partly decreed on lawful compromise under Order 23, Rule 3 CPC against some defendants and decreed against defaulting defendants under Order 8, Rule 10 CPC where no disputed question of fact survives - Decree can also operate against John Doe defendants in case of continuing anonymous misuse.
Statutory provision(s):
Civil Procedure Code, 1908 Order 23 Rule 3, Order 8 Rule 10; Indian Contract Act, 1872; Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 Section 168
Amitabh Bachchan v. Rajat Nagi, (Delhi) : Law Finder Doc Id # 3015244
