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Next time you use Mr Amitabh Bachchan's baritone or Mr Rajnikanth's trademark ‘punch' dialogue for commercial purpose, you could face the music from the celebrities.
A Delhi High Court has barred an Uttar Pradesh-based jeweller from using Bollywood superstar Mr Amitabh Bachchan and his wife, Jaya's pictures to sell its jewellery range.
The Muzzafarnagar-based Ramkumar Jewellers had used a replica of Tanishq's advertisement to sell its jewellery brand.
The Court contended that that using the Bachchans picture amounted to misuse of personality rights of the two actors and the jeweller was misleading people.
Tanishq had roped in the Bollywood's actor couple to generate awareness about its diamond jewellery brand. The advertisement ‘True Diamonds' was aimed at educating consumers about diamond buying. Ramkumar Jewellers had put up a hoarding similar to Tanishq's advertisement.
infringement of right
“The dishonest adoption of an identical advertisement for their products on hoardings by the defendants (Ramkumar Jewellers) and reproduction of the celebrities in the exact environment situation amounts to infringement of right vested with the plaintiff,” the court said. Mr Safir Anand, Senior Partner & Head – Trademarks, Contractual & Commercial IP, Anand and Anand said, “A brand goes to the celebrity because he has a certain following. However, if someone is using the brand icon's image without his permission then it tantamounts to infringement of right of publicity and the celebrity or the company which has chosen the celebrity has right to sue the violator”.
Interestingly, Mr Bachchan had recently tweeted about protecting his voice from being impersonated and used by various broadcast mediums.
right of publicity
Mr Anand said that under the ‘right of publicity' a celebrity can sue anyone who uses his voice, pictures or countenance without permission and the personality has right to control it and claim damages.
Earlier, the Southern superstar Mr Rajnikanth had reportedly issued a legal notice prohibiting anyone from imitating his screen persona or using the character for commercial gain, including by way of advertisements and imitation by mimics on television.
A couple of lawyers Business Line spoke to said that currently in India there is hardly any judicial precedent recognising ‘personality rights' nor is there any legislation expressly granting such a right.
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