In Bollywood’s latest courtroom drama, is Janhvi Kapoor the only loser?
Hi gossipers! Gossip Gal here, back with some fresh news, starring Janhvi Kapoor, who is currently in the middle of a courtroom drama. Let me spill the tea for ya!
To get you up to speed, how many of you know what “personality rights” mean? 2026 marks the fourth year since generative AI dramatically seeped into our lives, polluting the digital landscape forever. This transformation has been so loud that it has not only redefined what it means to be a public figure but has also brought the term ‘personality rights’ into public discourse. It was a simpler time, when this wasn’t a concept driving people nuts, yet today it has become the hottest topic in celebrity circles. So, of course, this gossip lover wouldn’t miss the chance to jump on the bandwagon. And trust me, sh!t has hit the ceiling! Whether it's a celebrity’s face digitally altered into misleading pictures and videos, or their image printed on unauthorised advertisements, crooks have a slew of tools to misuse and exploit a person’s identity.
Recently, actor Janhvi Kapoor moved to the Delhi High Court with 4000 web links and an appeal—to protect her personality rights against online criticism, unauthorised advertisement, and pornographic content using AI and deepfakes. While the Delhi High Court has ordered the removal of obscene content, fake accounts, and commercially exploitative platforms, it has refused to impose a blanket ban on her fan clubs, observing that fan communities, criticism, and satire are inevitable consequences of fame. And let me tell you, they have been quite blunt with the remarks they dished out with the judgment. And no, I’m not exaggerating. These are Justice Bhambani’s words, not mine:
“...Anybody who is in the public domain they are being abused left, right, and centre. So what? We are abused; that’s different. But you are in the public domain,” said the judge. “How do we draw the line? In law, we can only do so much and no more. To completely restrain everything cannot be the approach,” it stated, as per Live Law, adding, “We will draw a line, but where do we put the line? Today, many people are trying to hide their wrongdoings by saying celebrity or personality rights. How can the court allow that?” The judge also noted that while some fan clubs may be involved in the “commercial exploitation” of Janhvi’s personality rights, not all of them are necessarily “offensive”. “A part of it may be satire or critical of your work.”
In other words, the judiciary has taken its stance: it can deliver swift justice against explicit content, but when it comes to fan-community opinions, celebrities must get used to the heat of digital pitchforks. I don’t know about y’all, but someone please remind the judge that being judgmental is not part of their job description. Also, has anyone told them about a certain species in fandoms called creeps?
Now, allow me to address the question we're all thinking about: can celebrities really have their cake and eat it too? They love the glitzy perks and the ego-boosting fandom culture, but now they are also getting eager to put up walls when the internet gets a little too… creative. Is it fair? If celebs really live for the buzz to push their movies to get the sweet box office numbers, then, on paper, shouldn’t all sorts of attention be a win for them?
Yes, but it's not that simple, because with digital connectivity, fandom culture can get dark pretty quickly, as people can easily move from witty criticism on social media to full-blown AI and deepfake rendering to mint money. And then we have the court, which lives in a bubble where fandom and fraud are worlds apart, as shown by its refusal to impose a blanket ban on fan pages. Let’s imagine this: if one day a ‘fan’ goes rogue and starts dishing out AI slop, it would be a moment of vindication for Janhvi. But if a blanket ban is imposed on all fan clubs, celebs end up losing the source of organic hype that keeps them relevant. Whew, what a conundrum!
And you know what the worst part is, my dear gals? Janhvi Kapoor is not the only celebrity aboard a train hijacked by fraudsters; her sister Khushi Kapoor and Tabu are also there, begrudgingly fighting to protect their personality rights. Those were the days when the big privacy concerns of stepping into the spotlight could be narrowed down to hawk-eyed fans dissecting blurry paparazzi pictures and juicy deets in magazine columns. But today, celebrity surveillance, with its wildcard entries like deepfakes and AI, has made it clear that if someone chooses the world of glamour, navigating a playground that’s unapologetically algorithmic is non-negotiable. When someone’s voice and likeness can be viciously cloned to create AI slop, feeling ‘indignant’ cannot even come close to capturing the peculiarity of this issue.
Look, just because this drama is crazy does not mean there is no way out. So let me give you my two cents on this. Yes, the court may have delivered its verdict with the ‘who is immune to all this’ remark. Still, when the masses get access to tools that let them turn their screwed-up fantasies into AI slop using celebrity faces and voices, I find it hard to hold the plaintiff responsible for being cautious. I mean, the line between a fan and a pervert is almost non-existent. Today a fan, tomorrow a pervert. Or worse, fan by daylight, pervert by night. But on the flip side, I can’t ignore the heartwarming side of fans either. I mean, which fandom hasn’t formed genuine communities around their admiration and sometimes parasocial attachment to their favourites? The fan clubs with their unhinged photoshopped memes, discussion forums with people obsessing over their favourite celeb’s latest style, and tweets boasting about watching an actor’s movie trailer 50 times- what happens to them? A blanket ban on such communities as a preventive measure might work, but it would also wipe out all the colour from celebrity fandoms. Now, who would want that? Certainly not this gossipmonger.
Now, as netizens, we might have a new mission: to navigate the delicate tension between engaging in authentic discourse about celebrities and avoiding content that profits from exploiting them.
Janhvi Kapoor’s legal fight isn’t just a privileged actor silencing critics, but a warning for everyone as AI continues to advance. As AI and deepfakes become harder to spot, online images of everyday people could soon be weaponised like those of celebrities. The real danger is how close we are to normalising this threat.
Whether you agree with the judgment or not, we all know Janhvi’s paranoia; we feel it and live it on a daily basis. With Meta glasses on unsuspecting strangers and generative AI being pushed obsessively down our throats, even stepping out on the streets could become an episode of Black Mirror. Knowing your rights and fighting for them is chic. Public figures aren’t public property. Don’t let the creeps convince you otherwise!
You know you love me ;)
xoxo
💋Gossip Gal💋
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