“You seem to think you are above the law.” The Delhi High Court said that to the lawyer for Amit Jani, producer of Kala Hiran: The Battle for Legacy, on Monday, then ordered links to the film’s promotional material taken off X and YouTube.
The hearing was on a petition by Salman Khan against the film. Before reaching the teaser, the court turned on Jani’s conduct. “Your audacity seems to have increased because no order was passed the last time,” it told his counsel. It continued: “Your conduct is getting worse by the day. You cannot treat even an ordinary citizen in this manner.”
Jani’s lawyer argued that the material was “only a teaser” and asked how it could violate Khan’s personality rights. “I am not even taking his name,” the lawyer said. He added that the teaser had no deepfake or AI-generated content and that “there is no protection over events or public appearances.”
Khan’s counsel replied that of the four blackbuck-related cases, the actor had been acquitted in three, and the sentence in the fourth had been stayed. He also alleged that the film was trying to turn an entire community against Khan.
How the dispute got here
Khan went to the Delhi High Court against the makers of the film, alleging it was inspired by the long-running blackbuck poaching case involving him. He asked for an immediate stay on the release and for posters, teasers and other promotional material to come down.
Jani answered the legal notice on June 2. He rejected the allegations and said the film draws on material already in the public domain and centres on the Bishnoi community’s efforts to protect wildlife. He told India Today the legal action was premature and that Kala Hiran was “not a biopic on Salman Khan.” At that point, he said, nothing but the film’s poster had been released.
On July 1 the court deferred Khan’s plea after the makers assured it there would be no release and no CBFC submission until then.
