Actor Shatrughan Sinha Moves Bombay High Court To Protect His Personality Rights Including His Iconic Dialogue 'Khamosh'

Bollywood actor Shatrughan Sinha has moved the Bombay High Court seeking to protect his 'personality rights' citing the unauthorised use of his name, image, and especially his iconic dialogue "Khamosh."

Sinha's suit was heard by single-judge Justice Sharmila Deshmukh on Monday and was reserved for ad-interim orders.

In his plea through INDIALAW LLP, the veteran actor has explained that he has enjoyed an illustrious and influential career in the Indian cinema, spanning over four decades and marked by exceptional versatility and enduring cultural impact.

"The Plaintiff has a unique style of dialogue delivery and especially the unique manner of delivery of the lerm 'Khamosh' has been only associated with the Plaintiff. The Plaintiff is a recipient of various awards and recognition for his work and performance in the lndian cinema. Further, the Plaintiff also contributed to many socialand welfare issues. Currently, the Plaintiff is a Member of Parliament and has been involved in national and regional politics since over two decades," the plea reads.

In his plea through his son Luv Sinha, the actor has stated that he has a commanding screen presence, dialogue delivery, and unique on-screen persona, which has earned him the iconic screen name 'Shotgun.' Over the years, his body of work has generated substantial goodwill, recall value, and commercial significance, allof which continue to inure to his benefit, solidifying his status as a cultural icon within the Indian entertainment industry.

In his plaint, Sinha has stated that he has acted in several films, live performances in private and public events and thus enjoys moral rights in his performances and is entitled to restrain any third party from unauthorisedly distorting, mutilating or making other modifications to his performance that are prejudicial to his reputation.

"The Defendants are distorting, rnutilating and / or making other modifications to the video recordings of his performances for the purpose of creation / communication of Gnaphic lnterchange Formats (GlFs). The Plaintiff has not been informed priorto the creation and dissemination of such GlFs, nor has his consent been sought or secured. The Defendants, by reproducing clips containing the Plaintiffs performance, and that too in a manner which is prejudicial to the Plaintiffs reputation, brings disrepute to fie Plaintiff and makes him the subject of unsavoury humour, are violating his moral rights in his performances," the plea points put.

Besides his achievements in the film industry, Sinha has also highlighted his 'distinguished and impactful' political career spanning several decades, having entered politics in 1992 and serving as a Member of Parliament as well as a Union Cabinet Minister.

"Over the years, he has held key ministerial portfolios and contributed to policy-making and govemance, demonstrating a steadfast commitment to public service. His political journey, marked by widespread recognition and respect, has enabled him to successfully bridge the worlds of cinema and governance, thereby enhancing his stature as a public figure whose name, image, and persona carry significant social, political, and cultural influence. The Defendants' actions are continuing and ongoing in nature, causing inseparable harm to the Plaintiffs reputation, goodwill, and commercial interests, while depriving him of control over the quality, standard, and authenticity of the content and product bearing his persona, thereby giving rise to a clear and actionable cause of action against the Defendants," the plea contends.

In his plea, Sinha has sought John Doe orders against unknown parties and also named some global companies like Meta, X (formerly Twitter), Google, Amazon, Pinterest, Blogspot.com etc along with local portals and also the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and the Union Department of Telecommunication.

Appearance: Advocate Hiren Kamod along with Advocates Nidhi Singh, Abha Shah and Amisha Upadhyay instructed by INDIALAW LLP for Sinha