Bollywood couple Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai have filed separate lawsuits in the Delhi High Court against YouTube and its parent company Google. According to Reuters, the star duo is seeking Rs 4 crore in damages along with a permanent injunction to prevent YouTube from hosting or monetising any content that misrepresents them, misuses their voices, or circulates AI-generated deepfake videos. The petitions also request the court to direct Google to implement safeguards to ensure that manipulated content is not used to train other artificial intelligence platforms. Filed on September 6, the lawsuit states: “Such content being used to train AI models has the potential to multiply the instances of infringing use—first being uploaded on YouTube and viewed by the public, and then also being exploited for AI training.” Reportedly running over 1,500 pages, the lawsuit not only targets deepfake videos but also calls out little-known sellers of unauthorised merchandise, including posters, mugs, stickers, and even fake autographed photos. The petition contains numerous links and screenshots of YouTube videos that allegedly depict sexually explicit or fictitious AI-generated content. ALSO READ | Idly Kadai box office collection day 1: Dhanush-starrer off to a promising start, opens at Rs 10.5 crore One such video, created through AI manipulation, shows Abhishek suddenly kissing an actress, while another depicts Aishwarya sharing a meal with her former boyfriend Salman Khan as Abhishek stands in the background, visibly angry. A YouTube channel named AI Bollywood Ishq, cited in the lawsuit, has uploaded over 259 such videos, amassing 16.5 million views. One video alone, showing Salman and Aishwarya in a pool, has crossed 4 million views. The channel describes its content as “only for entertainment and creative storytelling.” The Delhi High Court heard the matter last month and directed Google’s legal counsel to submit written responses. The next hearing is scheduled for January 15, 2026. The judge also ordered the takedown of 518 specific links and posts identified by the actors, stating they caused both financial harm and reputational damage to the couple. YouTube’s India managing director, Gunjan Soni, recently described the platform as the “new TV for India,” noting that it serves around 600 million users in the country—its largest market globally, with Bollywood-related content being among its most popular segments.
