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Justice V. Mohana Questions Protection for Common Person's Misused Likeness
In a thought-provoking keynote address at a seminar exploring the intersections of art, culture, and law, Justice V. Mohana posed a fundamental question that strikes at the heart of India's evolving jurisprudence: what protection exists for a person whose likeness is misused but whose name carries no market value? The question, delivered on at the inaugural ceremony of the Seminar on 'Music, Cinema and Law' jointly organized by the and the in Kochi, highlighted a critical gap in the current legal framework that has largely been shaped by celebrity-driven litigation.
Justice Mohana's speech wove together themes from music, cinema, and legal practice, drawing parallels between the disciplines while zeroing in on the uneven development of
law. She noted that courts have granted reliefs to celebrities like Amitabh Bachchan, Anil Kapoor, and Arjit Singh when their likeness was commercially exploited using advanced technology. However, she cautioned that this protection
"leans heavily upon commercial recognition and served best to those already well-known."
The real challenge, she emphasized, is for the common individual whose name has no market value but whose image may be misused through
, unauthorized advertisements, or other technological means.
The Celebrity Bias in
Justice Mohana observed that the current development of
in India has been
"almost entirely crafted with the interpretation of the existing statute by the judiciary."
Courts have proceeded with novel issues as they arise, but the protection available remains skewed toward those with commercial recognition. She directly asked the seminar audience:
"What protection exists for a person whose likeness is misused but whose name carries no market value at all?"
This question, she noted, remains unanswered, though the legislature has begun to move alongside the courts, with amendments to the
being the first substantial step.
The judge's observation reflects a broader concern in and . While celebrities can rely on the , trademark law, and the to prevent unauthorized of their persona, non-celebrities often have no such recourse. Their likeness may be used in deepfake pornography, fake endorsements, or defamatory contexts, yet they may lack the financial resources or to seek redress. Justice Mohana's remarks underscore the need for a that protects every individual's right to control the use of their own image, regardless of fame.
Law's Struggle to Keep Pace with Technology
A recurring theme in Justice Mohana's address was the lag between technological advancement and legal adaptation.
"Technology moves at a pace faster than law. By the time law has come up with a solution, the problem would have changed,"
she said, quoting an observation that fresh legislation is not the end of difficulty but the beginning of another. This insight is particularly relevant in the context of artificial intelligence,
, and
, where the means of misuse evolve faster than the legal response.
The judge also drew attention to the problem of incorrect reporting and contextual manipulation. She compared this to songs written in one situation being set against images from another, acquiring a meaning its composer never intended.
"That is not a marginal phenomenon,"
she warned.
"For a very large number of our citizens, it is now the principal channel through which cultural material arrives and with it, a considerable amount of information about law."
She noted that courts are grappling with improper reporting where small parts of courtroom exchanges are described in a different light, giving a different context to a viewer who was not present.
"Reach upon this scale has created a problem of protection for which there is no real precedent."
The Confluence of Art and Justice
Justice Mohana's speech was not solely a critique of legal gaps; it was also a celebration of the symbiotic relationship between law, music, and cinema. She quoted Justice Felix Frankfurter, who connected legislation and music composition, and composer Bruce Adolphe, who compared an orchestra with a trial. She extended the metaphor to the courtroom itself:
"A court also sits before an audience, one that now watches proceedings as they happen and that forms its own view. That scrutiny is not a burden to be rescinded. It is the condition of legitimacy in an open system."
Drawing parallels between the invisible hours a musician spends practicing and the quiet reading of a brief by a lawyer or judge, she remarked:
"The advocate who commands a courtroom with apparent ease has in truth spent decades in equally invisible hours in the library."
She added that great judges and advocates carry the same humility, returning to a familiar provision and reading it as if they had never read it before.
Cinema as a Legal Educator
Justice Mohana also emphasized the role of cinema in educating society about legal concepts. She cited films such as
Pink
,
Chhapaak
,
Thappad
,
Jolly LLB
,
Jai Bhim
, and
Nna Thaan Case Kodu
as powerful tools that teach law "without a single classroom." She argued that while law attempts to change conduct by introducing rules and structure, art and culture hold the power to change the way people think and see.
"A judgment reaches the parties before the court. In time, through reporting, it reaches lawyers, students, and scholars. It reaches the general public, if at all, through the retelling. Legal concepts are complex when stated in the abstract. However, a cinema can carry the same idea inside a storyline which the viewer recognizes and understands without effort and with clarity."
A Call for Balanced Learning
Concluding her address, Justice Mohana advised academicians, scholars, and particularly students to engage in the arts while learning the law.
"Read the statute and also read the poem, learn the procedure and at the same time, listen to music to soothe the mind, expand your horizon to reach beyond what is written in the books. The first will make you competent; the second will make you an insightful person to listen to."
Her message underscores the need for a holistic legal education that embraces creativity and empathy, essential qualities for judges and lawyers navigating a rapidly changing technological landscape.
The seminar, which included an inaugural ceremony attended by Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan, Chief Justice Soumen Sen, and other dignitaries, also featured performances by members of the , , and , reinforcing the theme of art and law converging. Justice Mohana's keynote left the audience with a pressing unanswered question—one that the legal community must now urgently address.
