City Civil Court Hyderabad Grants Ad-Interim Injunction Protecting Chiranjeevi’s Personality Rights

The Court of the Chief Judge, City Civil Court, Hyderabad, through Order dated 26th September 2025, in I.A. No.6275 of 2025 in O.S.No.441 of 2025, has granted an ad-interim injunction in favour of renowned film actor and philanthropist Konidela Chiranjeevi. The order restrains multiple named parties and in general, any person, from infringing upon Chiranjeevi’s personality and publicity rights, including the unauthorised commercial use of his name, image, voice, and other recognisable attributes.

Chiranjeevi, whose distinguished career spans over four decades and includes numerous honours such as the Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan, sought the court’s intervention to stop widespread unpermitted usage of his identity on merchandise, online platforms, and through the application of artificial intelligence technologies.

The court recognised Chiranjeevi as one of the most iconic personalities in the Indian film industry, whose reputation and public esteem have suffered due to the defendant parties’ actions—specifically naming, imaging, video-memes, and merchandise sales without consent. The order emphasises that such exploitation and misrepresentation, especially through digital and AI mediums, pose severe, irreparable harm to Chiranjeevi’s reputation and economic interests.

The injunction immediately restrains defendants No.1 to 33 and defendant No.36 (John Doe) from directly or indirectly using Chiranjeevi’s name, stage titles (including “MEGA STAR”, “CHIRU”, and “ANNAYYA”), voice, image, or any other exclusive personality attribute for any commercial or personal gain, across all formats and media. The order also directs urgent notification to all respondents, with further proceedings scheduled for 27th October, 2025.

Any infringement of personality or publicity rights, or acts of defamation, will unleash severe consequences under both civil and criminal law. All persons and entities including but not limited to television channels, digital platforms and media organizations are expressly cautioned that direct or indirect use, misrepresentation, or distortion of Chiranjeevi’s name, image, voice, likeness, or personality attributes for the purpose of increasing viewership, enhancing TRPs, or deriving any commercial or reputational benefit, without explicit written consent, will be met with the strictest remedies available under law, ensuring robust enforcement of rights and protection against reputational harm.

On 11th October, 2025, Chiranjeevi met Mr. Sajjanar, Commissioner of Police, Hyderabad, and personally handed over a copy of the Court Order to him. During the meeting, Chiranjeevi sought Mr. Sajjanar’s expert advice regarding the process of setting criminal law into motion in this context. The two engaged in a constructive discussion on the need for penal laws to be made fiercer and more coercive to effectively address and deter such violations, reflecting Chiranjeevi’s commitment to combatting unauthorised exploitation of personality rights and also invasion of privacy. Mr. Sajjanar reiterated that the legal action taken by Chiranjeevi serves to reinforce the importance of personality and publicity rights within the Indian entertainment industry, ensuring respect for the individual’s reputation and intellectual property.

Chiranjeevi profusely thanks Sri. S. Nagesh Reddy, Advocate and his legal team for their effort and professional expertise. Their commitment, and attention to detail were instrumental in achieving this landmark protection of personality and publicity rights.

For further information or seeking authorization to use Chiranjeevi’s personality rights, pls email to Mr. Sar. Chagla, General Counsel and Chief Legal Officer for the Konidela Family (czzarr@moiralegal.com)