Can AI really make you say something you never said?
Without a doubt. Imagine waking up to find a video of yourself on your phone saying things that never left your lips, and watching it spread like wildfire right in the middle of election season.
That is exactly what happened to Congress MP Shashi Tharoor in March 2026, when deepfake videos made it look like he was praising Pakistan’s diplomacy, forcing him to rush to court just to get the fake footage taken down.
Is this happening only to politicians?
Not even close.
High profile names like Swami Ramdev, Allu Arjun, Arjun Kapoor, and Ravi Kishan have all had to knock on the doors of the Delhi High Court to fight back against the unauthorized cloning of their faces, voices, and names. Today, AI can effortlessly copy how you look, mimic how you talk, and put entirely fabricated words right into your mouth.
So, who actually owns your face and voice in India?
That is where things get fascinating.
Right now, India does not have a single, dedicated law specifically written to protect personality rights. Even so, courts have stepped up, recognizing that people—especially public figures—hold genuine rights over their own identities, including their name, image, and voice.
If there is no specific law, how are people getting protection?
It all comes down to the courts.
Judges have built up a framework of personality rights over time by leaning on constitutional protections like Articles 19 and 21, alongside traditional legal concepts of privacy, passing off, and copyright. In the past, this usually meant stopping companies from illegally using a star's photo to sell a product. But AI has blown that problem wide open.
What exactly has AI changed?
It is all about scale and sheer believability.
Years ago, misuse usually meant a brand slapping a celebrity's picture on a poster without permission. Today, AI can clone a voice down to the exact inflection, map a face onto a video, and weave together a hyperrealistic clip of someone saying something they completely disagree with. The stakes are no longer just about celebrity endorsements.
Haven’t India’s IT laws caught up with AI yet?
They are finally starting to catch up.
Recent amendments to the Information Technology Rules put heavy new duties on tech platforms, especially when it comes to labeling AI generated content. If a court or an authorized government official tells a platform to take something down, they now have a tight three hour window to comply. If they fail, they risk losing their vital legal immunity, known as safe harbour.
What does safe harbour actually mean?
In simple terms, safe harbour means an online platform is not automatically held legally liable for everything random users upload, as long as the platform follows the rules laid out by the law. Section 79 of the Information Technology Act, 2000 is what grants this protection to qualifying intermediaries.
But what if I am not Shashi Tharoor or Allu Arjun?
That is the million dollar question.
Celebrities have the advantage of proving the commercial value of their name and image, and they usually have the deep pockets required to hire lawyers and approach courts quickly.
But what happens to an everyday citizen whose face suddenly gets stolen and dropped into a financial scam, a fake political endorsement, or a damaging deepfake? Right now, there is still no broad personality rights statute that clearly lays out what your rights are, what counts as a violation, and how fast you can get a remedy.
Does that mean every single meme, parody, or political spoof is now illegal?
Absolutely not, and drawing that line is crucial.
Parody, satire, sharp criticism, and honest political commentary must always be protected. The real enemy is deceptive impersonation, sneaky commercial exploitation, and fake statements disguised as the absolute truth.
So what is the bigger picture?
AI has made human identity something that can be copied, pasted, and manufactured for practically zero cost.
Our legal system is now forced to answer a deceptively simple question: if technology can replicate your face, clone your voice, and rewrite your words, who legally owns you? Until India passes comprehensive laws to answer that, your protection will keep depending on the courts, and too often, on how famous you happen to be.
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