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21/05/2024 : GS-2 Mains : Polity || Protecting Your Persona: Understanding Personality Rights in India || Daily Hot Topic (Arora IAS)
Daily Hot Topic
Topic : Protecting Your Persona: Understanding Personality Rights in India
GS-2 Mains : Polity
Revision Notes
Context:
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A recent Delhi High Court ruling protected the personality and publicity rights of a Bollywood actor.
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The court restricted unauthorized use of the actor’s name, image, voice, and likeness by various entities.
What are Personality Rights?
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Personality rights safeguard an individual’s right to control their public image.
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These rights encompass aspects like name, image, voice, mannerisms, or even a signature pose.
Importance for Celebrities:
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Celebrities rely heavily on their public image for commercial success.
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Misuse of their identity for advertisements can damage their reputation and brand value.
Legal Framework in India:
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Personality rights are not explicitly mentioned in Indian law, but fall under the umbrella of:
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Right to Privacy
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Right to Property
Types of Personality Rights:
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Right of Publicity: Protects against unauthorized commercial exploitation of one’s image or likeness. (Similar to trademark protection)
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Right to Privacy: Ensures control over how one’s personality is presented publicly.
Publicity Rights vs. Right to Pass Off:
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Publicity rights address unauthorized commercial use of a person’s identity.
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Right to Pass Off (a tort) deals with misrepresentation of goods or services as belonging to another party, causing financial or reputational harm.
Legal Protection for Publicity Rights:
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In India, publicity rights find support in existing laws like:
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Trade Marks Act, 1999
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Copyright Act, 1957
Protecting Your Image: Celebrity Rights in India
Key Points:
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No Specific Law: India doesn’t have a law specifically for personality rights, but courts use right to privacy and property rights for protection.
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Legal Action: Celebrities can sue for injunction (court order to stop) against unauthorized commercial use of their persona (name, image, voice etc.).
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Injunction Types:
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Ex-parte injunction: Relief granted without hearing the other side.
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Omnibus injunction: Protection against any unauthorized use, even unforeseen ones.
Criteria for Injunction (as per Titan Case):
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Valid Right: The celebrity must have a legally recognized right to their identity/persona.
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Easy Identification: The unauthorized use must clearly identify the celebrity.
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Well-known celebrities need no additional proof.
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Others might need evidence to establish association.
Landmark Cases:
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2022, Delhi HC: Anil Kapoor sues for protection of his name, image, mannerisms etc. (similar case involving copyright was also filed).
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2022, Delhi HC: Amitabh Bachchan sues to prevent use of his name variations (“Big B”), style of speaking etc.
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2015, Madras HC: Case involving actor Rajnikanth establishes “personality right vests on celebrities”.