From Rashmika deepfake to draft rules: India’s 2-year fight against AI misuse

On October 22, India introduced draft amendments to the IT Rules aimed at addressing deepfakes menace

Two years after a manipulated video of actor Rashmika Mandanna went viral, the government has unveiled draft amendments to the IT Rules formally defining “synthetically generated information” -- capping a two-year effort to curb deepfake misuse.

Over this period, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) issued a series of advisories to social media platforms, the Delhi and Bombay High Courts recognised personality rights against AI misuse, and IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw articulated a “techno-legal” regulatory vision.

Here's the two-year journey --

• November 2023

Rashmika Mandanna controversy: In November 2023, a morphed video of actor Rashmika Mandanna went viral on social media. The clip appeared to show the actor entering a lift was identified as AI-generated. However, by then, the video had become viral. The incident drew strong public outrage and triggered debate about the risks posed by deepfakes.

IT ministry sends first advisory: A few days after the Mandanna incident, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) issued an advisory to social media companies, urging them to tackle deepfake content. In the advisory,  the government warned social media intermediaries that not removing deepfake content from their platforms can attract damages, such as losing safe harbour provisions and so on.

Modi acknowledges deepfakes harm:  A few weeks later Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged the issue during a public event, describing deepfakes as a serious threat after being himself targeted in a fake video showing him performing Garba.

Ministers' meetings with social media cos: Soon after IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and former minister of state in the IT ministry Rajeev Chandrasekhar, announced separate meetings with social media companies, on November 23 and November 24, respectively. During the Chandrasekhar meeting, the former minister warned that platforms could temporarily be blocked in cases of violations.

• December 2023

Second advisory: A second, more detailed advisory was issued on December 26, 2023, requiring platforms to explicitly inform users about prohibited content -- including AI-generated misinformation -- and to communicate potential legal consequences under the Indian Penal Code and IT Act, 2000.

• March 2024

The controversial AI government approval advisory: On March 1, 2024, MeitY issued a new advisory requiring intermediaries to label under-tested or unreliable AI models and obtain prior government approval before deploying such systems in India.

It also directed platforms that host or enable content modification to embed metadata or unique identifiers in synthetic content to trace its origin. However, following industry backlash, MeitY revised the advisory on March 15.

Delhi HC called deepfakes serious menace: In August 2024, the Delhi High Court called deepfakes a “serious menace in society,” urging stronger regulatory intervention.

Govt directed to form committee: The Delhi High Court on November 21,  directed the Centre to constitute a committee on deepfake regulation. MeitY confirmed that it had formed such a committee a day earlier.

CERT-In issues advisory: At the same time, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) issued a high-severity advisory warning that deepfakes were becoming tools for fraud, disinformation and social engineering attacks. It urged individuals and organisations to verify sources, strengthen privacy settings and adopt authentication tools.

By 2025, India’s legal landscape was dominated by a wave of celebrity deepfake lawsuits.

September 2025:  The Delhi High Court granted Aishwarya Rai Bachchan interim protection against unauthorised use of her likeness in deepfakes and AI chatbots. Shortly after, the Rai and Abhishek Bachchan filed a Rs 4 crore suit against YouTube and Google , highlighting a channel featuring over 250 AI-generated videos with millions of views.

October 2025:  The Bombay High Court granted Akshay Kumar ex-parte relief against AI-generated videos and voice clones. Justice Arif S Doctor observed that deepfakes were so sophisticated that it was “virtually impossible to discern” their inauthenticity.

• On October 22, 2025, MeitY unveiled draft amendments to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 -- India’s first attempt to define and regulate "synthetically generated information".

The draft rules propose:

• A clear legal definition of synthetically generated information.
• Labelling and metadata embedding requirements for all synthetic content.
• Visibility and audibility standards ensuring labels cover at least 10 per cent  of screen or audio duration.
• Enhanced due diligence for significant social media intermediaries (SSMIs), including user declarations and technical verification of synthetic content.