Deepfake Abuse Pushes Tollywood Towards Stronger Protection

The growing misuse of AI to create abusive and sexually explicit deepfakes has alarmed Tollywood. The recent AI morphed Chuttamalle video involving Janhvi Kapoor triggered strong condemnation from Jr NTR, who called for strict rules against such misuse. The episode has once again highlighted how quickly fabricated content can spread online.
India already has legal provisions covering impersonation, identity theft, privacy violations and obscene content, while amended IT Rules require platforms to address harmful synthetic content more quickly. However, the speed of AI generated material often creates a difficult enforcement gap, making rapid detection, takedown mechanisms, investigation and punishment equally important.
Tollywood now hopes Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister and actor Pawan Kalyan can help push stronger measures protecting artists’ dignity and identity. His own personality rights case resulted in Delhi High Court protection against unauthorised AI, deepfakes, morphing and digital editing involving his name, image, likeness and voice.
Pawan Kalyan has also announced a dedicated mechanism in Andhra Pradesh for social media abuse complaints and indicated that stronger legislation could be considered if existing laws prove inadequate. For the film industry, the priority should be clear, faster takedowns, accountable platforms, specialised cybercrime action and meaningful punishment for creators and distributors of malicious deepfakes.
- Veda
















































