Jackie Shroff, fondly known as Apna Bhidu, moved the Delhi High Court to protect his name, publicity and personality rights. In his petition, the veteran Bollywood actor sought protection for his name, his nicknames Jackie and Jaggu Dada, his voice and mannerisms as well as the unauthorised use of ‘Bhidu’, which is a word he has trademarked. The 67-year-old actor has taken this decision after memes using his image without his consent made the rounds. He also believes that his name and voice are being ‘misused’ for commercial gains. The matter will be heard in court on May 15.
Jackie is following in the footsteps of fellow actors Anil Kapoor and Amitabh Bachchan, who filed similar lawsuits.
Amitabh Bachchan
Big B was the first Bollywood star who took the necessary steps to protect his identity. In 2022, after hearing Amitabh Bachchan’s petition the Delhi High Court ruled that his name, voice and images could not be used without the celebrity’s authorisation. The 81-year-old star took this decision as his identity was being used to promote businesses without his permission
Anil Kapoor
Last year, the Delhi High Court passed an order protecting Anil Kapoor’s personality rights. According to the actor’s lawsuit, his name along with his mannerisms, likeness, voice, image and even his catchphrase ‘jhakaas’ cannot be used without his consent. Talking about the same, 67-year-old had said that Big B ‘paved the way’ for other celebs and Anil just took it a step further
In the past, celebrities like Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, Ajay Devgn, Priyanka Chopra and Sunny Leone have trademarked their names. Actor Sunny Deol had also spoken about registering a copyright on his voice and dialogues, much like Amitabh, but he didn’t go ahead with it. Well, let’s wait and watch what verdict the court rules tomorrow after hearing Jaggu Dada’s plea.