Jackie Shroff moves Delhi High Court, objects to insulting memes and 'unauthorised' use of the word 'bhidu'

Jackie Shroff's counsel raised an objection to the ‘misuse’ of his rights through the sale of ringtones, wallpapers, and merchandise.

Actor Jackie Shroff on Tuesday approached the Delhi High Court to seek protection of his personality and publicity rights. As reported by news agency PTI, the petition has been filed against several entities using his name, pictures, voice and word ‘bhidu’ without his consent for commercial gain. (Also Read | Jackie Shroff shares he became ‘more cautious’ after becoming a father: I was a little reckless back in the day)

Jackie's objects to ‘misuse’ of his personality

Jackie Shroff has approached the court.

Jackie's counsel raised an objection to the "misuse" of his rights through the sale of ringtones, wallpapers, and merchandise. He also objected to "insulting" memes, GIFs and the use of artificial intelligence. He also alleged infringement of his trade mark rights on the Marathi word "bhidu (partner)".

What Jackie's counsel said

The actor's counsel said people can't be allowed to mislead consumers into buying products thinking they are endorsed by Jackie. "Jackie Shroff is so well known. People will think it is endorsed by him. He has a certain marketability to his name. It can't be done without his consent," the counsel said, as quoted by PTI.

Jackie's counsel also told the court that merchandise of mugs, signed posters, and bags were being sold online in violation of the actor's rights. "All are using his name, images and earning huge money. This is all defamatory stuff...there are distasteful dirty words in voice-over. There is nothing legitimate about any of this," added the counsel.

Fans will see Jackie in the spy espionage film Two Zero One Four alongside Akshay Oberoi. Directed by Shravan Tiwari, the film is slated to release this year. He also has the action thriller Baby John, directed by A Kaleeswaran, in the pipeline. The film will also star Varun Dhawan, Keerthy Suresh, Wamiqa Gabbi, and Rajpal Yadav in key roles.

with PTI inputs