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Delhi HC protects personality rights of podcaster Raj Shamani, refuses to order restraint for satirical material

Raj Shamani’s lawyers argued that AI-generated deep fakes are misrepresenting the podcaster as recommending a cricket-betting channel.

2 min readUpdated: Nov 17, 2025 05:06 PM IST

The court, however, declined to restrict satire or parody without further legal proceedings.

The Delhi High Court ordered immediate removal of deepfakes, fake chatbots and other unauthorised content misusing Raj Shamani’s identity. (Photo via X:@rajshamani)

The Delhi High Court Monday granted ex parte takedown of unauthorised videos allegedly infringing on the personality rights of podcaster and social media influencer Raj Shamani.

Justice Manmeet Pritam Sigh Arora, however, refrained from granting ex parte interim injunction against the use of memes and other content that fall in the category of satire, criticism or parody, while observing that a separate action through a suit must be brought for such content, if maintainable in law, for the court’s adjudication.

Advocate Nakul Gandhi and Senior Advocate Diya Kapur, who represented Shamani, argued that AI-generated deep fakes are misrepresenting the podcaster as recommending a cricket-betting channel. It was also highlighted that certain websites are using his name unauthorisedly to claim that he is available for bookings for corporate events. Further, it was pointed out that there are fake chatbots on Telegram channels where Shamani is purportedly giving advice on cryptocurrency and soliciting funds, as well as chatbots using his image and name.

Kapur also stated that some other YouTube channels are unauthorisedly using Shamani’s content and reposting it, while removing the show’s logo and name, and hiding the show’s name as seen emblazoned on the mics.

The court, by protecting Shamani’s personality rights, has restrained the parties ex parte against such unauthorised use of his content.

While Kapur also detailed that among the infringing acts was the use of Shamani’s trademarked hashtag ‘Figuring Out’, based on the name of his show, Justice Arora orally remarked that it cannot restrain the use of the hashtag ex parte, without hearing the defendants. “You’re a public persona, I think you’ve to give that much leeway,” Justice Arora remarked.

Sohini Ghosh

Sohini Ghosh is a Senior Correspondent at The Indian Express. Previously based in Ahmedabad covering Gujarat, she recently moved to the New Delhi bureau, where she primarily covers legal developments at the Delhi High Court Professional Profile Background: An alumna of the Asian College of Journalism (ACJ), she previously worked with ET NOW before joining The Indian Express. Core Beats: Her reporting is currently centered on the Delhi High Court, with a focus on high-profile constitutional disputes, disputes over intellectual property, criminal and civil cases, issues of human rights and regulatory law (especially in the areas of technology and healthcare). Earlier Specialty: In Gujarat, she was known for her rigorous coverage in the beats of crime, law and policy, and social justice issues, including the 2002 riot cases, 2008 serial bomb blast case, 2016 flogging of Dalits in Una, among others. She has extensively covered health in the state, including being part of the team that revealed the segregation of wards at the state’s largest government hospital on lines of faith in April 2020. With Ahmedabad being a UNESCO heritage city, she has widely covered urban development and heritage issues, including the redevelopment of the Sabarmati Ashram Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025) Her recent reporting from the Delhi High Court covers major political, constitutional, corporate, and public-interest legal battles: High-Profile Case Coverage She has extensively covered the various legal battles - including for compensation under the aegis of North East Delhi Riots Claims Commission - pertaining to the 2020 northeast Delhi riots, as well as 1984 anti-Sikh riots. She has also led coverage at the intersection of technology and governance, and its impact on the citizenry, from, and beyond courtrooms — such as the government’s stakeholder consultations for framing AI-Deepfake policy. Signature Style Sohini is recognized for her sustained reporting from courtrooms and beyond. She specialises in breaking down dense legal arguments to make legalese accessible for readers. Her transition from Gujarat to Delhi has seen her expand her coverage on regulatory, corporate and intellectual property law, while maintaining a strong commitment to human rights and lacuna in the criminal justice system. X (Twitter): @thanda_ghosh ... Read More