VFX expert Arun Kumar calls for law to mandate bold labelling of AI on social media amid Janhvi Kapoor, Keerthy Suresh flagging misuse | HT Exclusive

In an interview with Hindustan Times, CB Arun Kumar, dean of communication, film, and gaming at Pearl Academy, discusses concerns surrounding AI.

The boom in artificial intelligence (AI) has affected the film industry in more ways than one, even before the technology has been fully integrated into film production. Misuse is rampant, with numerous actors such as Janhvi Kapoor, Sunainaa and Keerthy Suresh expressing shock and warning of legal action after seeing their likeness being used in objectionable deepfake videos or photos. And the conversations around ‘is that CGI or sloppy AI’ are never-ending every time a promotional poster or video drops.

Janhvi Kapoor had recently called out those using AI to morph her visuals from the Chuttamalle song in Devara. ((Image used for representative purpose only))

Speaking exclusively to Hindustan Times, VFX expert and dean of communications, film and gaming at Pearl Academy, CB Arun Kumar, discusses the moral concerns surrounding the use of AI and calls for laws mandating proper labelling of AI-generated content on social media. He also calls blanket criticism of the technology foolish.

Growing concern around objectionable content

Arun points out that even before the existence of AI and sophisticated deepfakes, people would use body doubles, Photoshop and later VFX techniques like cloning and morphing to generate fake content. AI has now, unfortunately, become another tool in their arsenal for making a quick buck. “There are already plenty of legal ways to take down that kind of objectionable content,” he adds.

However, the issue now lies in AI making it difficult for viewers to distinguish between what’s real and what's fake. “Even on a legal platform like Instagram, the AI content disclaimer is a tiny, hidden message that viewers might not easily see,” explains Arun, adding, “We need stricter laws that mandate clear, bold labelling of AI content so it can no longer pretend to be news, like some disaster clips that proliferate on the internet. The real problem arises when the audience can no longer tell what’s real and what is fake.”

The AI Info tag on Instagram is hidden between the username and the image or video being posted in a small font. (Image credit: Meta)

However, Arun believes that blanket criticism of AI is foolish. “It’s important to distinguish between blanket criticism of AI and speaking up about the illegal use of it trained on an artist’s work without their consent. The former is foolish; the latter is a genuine legal and moral concern. Taking the Luddite position that all AI is evil and all the work it creates is stolen from humans is simply meaningless,” he says.

Says AI is a cause of concern for digital artists too

Arun points out that throughout history, human progress has depended on our ability to copy and produce the work of other humans, much like art students learn by studying and copying work of masters. “All human art is based on the foundations of work done earlier. Legally, an exact copy is a forgery only if the artist claims it is the original artist's work. If I paint the Mona Lisa or The Starry Night and say it is a reproduction I made. It would be just that, a reproduction. The value still only resides in the original artwork preserved in a museum,” he reasons.

However, he acknowledges that not just actors but even digital artists are bearing the brunt of AI's rise in different ways. “The work they create painstakingly is no longer worth as much commercially. Many graphic artists who work in media, business, film, TV, architecture or fashion could find their work being compared to AI slop. The reality is that the AI revolution is putting them out of work because it can do the work faster. True artists who can use AI as another tool in their pipeline will survive and thrive,” he predicts.

Arun says that so far, 2026 has made him excited, curious, slightly concerned, but still deeply optimistic for the future of the industry. “There is nothing we can do about AI; it’s already there. Pandora’s box is open. Those who bury their heads in the sand like ostriches are likely to be swept away by the tides of time. We all have to learn to live with it and thrive,” he rounds off.