The Delhi High Court on Friday issued notice on an interim application filed by actor Salman Khan seeking to restrain the makers of the proposed film “Kala Hiran: The Battle for Legacy” from producing, promoting, releasing or otherwise exploiting the project, alleging infringement of his personality rights.
The Vacation Bench of Justice Neena Bansal Krishna passed the order while hearing an application seeking interim injunction in Khan’s pending civil suit seeking protection of his personality and publicity rights. The matter has been listed for further hearing on June 19.
Appearing for Khan, Advocate Nizam Pasha submitted that the filmmakers were attempting to commercially exploit the actor’s identity and public persona through a project allegedly inspired by the 1998 blackbuck poaching case and his purported dispute with gangster Lawrence Bishnoi. He informed the Court that a poster released on May 29 featured a person bearing a striking resemblance to Khan and that a trailer of the film had also been released.
The counsel argued that the film amounted to an unauthorised appropriation of Khan’s personality rights and sought an injunction against the entire project. It was further submitted that although multiple criminal cases had been registered against the actor in relation to the blackbuck incident, he had been acquitted in three of them. Despite this, his name continued to be associated with the film through media reports and promotional material, allegedly causing prejudice to his reputation.
During the hearing, the Court enquired about the proposed release date of the film. Counsel responded that while the trailer had already been released, no official release date had yet been announced. He nevertheless urged the Court to restrain further development and promotion of the project.
According to the plea, the film contained unmistakable references to Khan despite not expressly naming him. The actor alleged that the promotional material depicts a lookalike wearing his signature blue bracelet, a feature widely associated with him in the public domain. The petition further stated that one of the posters portrays the character holding a firearm, creating a narrative allegedly inconsistent with judicial findings in the criminal proceedings.
Khan contended that such depiction was particularly objectionable because he had been acquitted in proceedings under the Arms Act and that the portrayal was capable of misleading the public regarding the actual facts of the case. The plea asserts that the film falsely associates him with events and circumstances that do not reflect the judicial record.
The actor also alleged that despite receiving a legal notice dated April 24, 2026, calling upon them to desist from developing and promoting the project, the producers continued to publicise the film and circulate content linking it to him. According to the petition, the promotional campaign has deliberately leveraged his identity, image and reputation to generate publicity and commercial gain.
The plea describes the proposed film as a gross violation of Khan’s recognised personality rights and seeks immediate injunctive relief against its development, production, publication, promotion and release pending adjudication of the suit.
After considering the submissions, the High Court issued notice to the defendants and directed the matter to be listed on June 19 for further proceedings.
The post Delhi High Court issues notice on Salman Khan plea seeking stay on film Kala Hiran: The Battle for Legacy appeared first on India Legal.