The Delhi High Court has granted relief to actor Akkineni Nagarjuna by issuing a restraining order against the unauthorised commercial exploitation of his name, voice, photographs and likeness. The order directs websites and online platforms named in the petition to remove infringing content within 72 hours.
In its order, the court noted the significance of protecting celebrity personality rights, stating, “Misuse of one’s personality rights not only affects their economic interests but also violates their right to live with dignity. Nagarjuna is one of the biggest superstars in the country. He has a huge number of fans. If his name, likeness, voice is used commercially, it will create confusion among a large number of people.”
The bench, led
by Justice Tejas Karia, also directed the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to ensure blocking of the identified URLs within 72 hours.
The case stems from a petition filed by Nagarjuna on September 25, seeking protection of his personality rights amid rising concerns in the entertainment industry about unauthorised use of celebrity identities.
Representing the actor, Advocate Pravin Anand highlighted Nagarjuna’s stature and contribution to Indian cinema. He said, “He is an actor from the Telugu film industry, has acted in 95 films, two national awards, 9 Nandi awards, 3 Filmfare awards. He is a reputed person in the Telugu film industry. He is called the celluloid scientist because of the versatile nature of his acting style.”
Nagarjuna had also expressed his gratitude to the court on X (formerly Twitter), saying, “Grateful to the Hon’ble Delhi High Court for protecting my personality rights in today’s digital age. The vital legal strategy and arguments were led by Senior Counsel Mr. Vaibhav Gaggar, and Mr. Pravin Anand alongwith Ms. Vaishali, Mr. Somdev, and Mr. Vibhav. Thank you for standing by me.”
Nagarjuna follows the footsteps of prominent actors including Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, and filmmaker Karan Johar, all of whom have successfully petitioned the Delhi High Court to protect their identity from misuse. Karan Johar’s case, for example, addressed unauthorised merchandise and the use of his image online without permission. Other celebrities like Anil Kapoor, Jackie Shroff, and Amitabh Bachchan have also secured legal safeguards for their personality rights.
On the professional front, Nagarjuna appeared in two films this year, Kuberaa and Coolie. While Kuberaa underperformed, Coolie performed reasonably well at the box office. He is also preparing for his milestone 100th film, tentatively titled King 100, directed by Ra Karthik. Reports suggest the movie may release in May 2026.