Delhi HC protects Kumar Sanu’s personality rights after Aishwarya Rai, Hrithik Roshan and Karan Johar

Kumar Sanu has secured protection from the Delhi High Court to safeguard his personality and publicity rights. The court has ordered the removal of objectionable videos and content that misused his name, voice, likeness, and performances on social media.

As reported by PTI, Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora said a detailed interim injunction order would follow to protect the singer’s rights and remove the offending material.

Singer requests protection of full identity rights

Kumar Sanu filed the plea to protect his personality and publicity rights. This includes his name, voice, vocal style and technique, vocal arrangements and interpretations, mannerisms and manner of singing, images, caricatures, photographs, likeness, and signature.

Sanu also asked for protection against unauthorised or unlicensed use and commercial exploitation by third parties, which could create confusion, deception, or dilute his public image.

The suit was filed through advocates Shikha Sachdeva and Sana Raees Khan. It also alleges violation of the singer's moral rights in his performances under the provisions of the Copyright Act.

Court notes social media content causing distress

During the hearing, the court noted that Sanu had complained about four profiles on Facebook and Instagram. The 334 URLs he provided, however, were no longer available. The singer is upset about GIFs, audio, and video recordings of his performances and voice. These, he says, bring disrepute and make him a subject of “unsavoury humour,” which violates his moral rights.

Kumar Sanu’s plea

The plea states, "Such merchandise and audios/videos of the plaintiff generate revenue for the defendants, as they are uploaded and streamed on social networking websites, including but not limited to Facebook, Instagram and YouTube, which generate revenue based on the number of clicks or views to a particular image/video."

The singer added that these acts also amount to false endorsements and passing off, and therefore must be stopped by a court order.

High court highlights importance of celebrity rights

Kumar Sanu’s case follows a growing trend of celebrities approaching the Delhi High Court to protect their personality and publicity rights. Recently, Bollywood actors Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Hrithik Roshan, filmmaker Karan Johar, and Telugu actor Akkineni Nagarjuna also sought protection. The court granted them interim relief.