Hundreds of AI-generated Bollywood videos with over 16 million views have been deleted from Google’s YouTube following a Reuters report. The removal action targets content similar to those at the heart of a prominent legal challenge filed by Bollywood stars Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan to protect their intellectual property and personality rights.
The celebrity couple has approached a New Delhi judge, seeking the removal and prohibition of the creation of AI videos that infringe on their rights. Critically, their lawsuits also challenge YouTube’s AI training policy, arguing that allowing such manipulated content to train AI models risks the further, uncontrollable proliferation of misleading deepfake material.
A significant YouTube channel, which shared “AI-generated Bollywood love stories” and was flagged in the Reuters report, has been removed. This channel, previously featuring 259 videos—some allegedly sexually explicit—had accumulated a massive 16.5 million views. On Friday, its link was inaccessible, stating: “This page isn’t available.” All its videos are no longer live on the platform. The most popular video on the now-deleted channel, an AI animation of Salman Khan and Aishwarya Rai in a swimming pool, alone garnered 4.1 million views.
In an email to Reuters, YouTube confirmed the channel flagged in the news agency’s report was deleted by the creator, and the content is no longer available. While offering no further detail on the specific account, titled ‘AI Bollywood Ishq’, YouTube reiterated its policy, stating the company prohibits harmful misinformation and removes content that has been technically manipulated or doctored in a way that misleads users. Attempts to contact the channel owner were unsuccessful.
This widespread content removal underscores the escalating tension between platform policies, celebrity personality rights, and the rapid rise of sophisticated, unauthorized AI-generated content, often referred to as deepfakes. With approximately 600 million users, India represents YouTube’s largest global market, where entertainment content, particularly Bollywood videos, enjoys immense popularity. The legal battle initiated by the Bachchans brings the growing global issue of regulating AI content and protecting digital rights into sharp focus within the world’s most populous nation and one of its largest video consumption markets.
Key Highlights:
- Mass YouTube Deletion: Hundreds of AI-generated Bollywood videos, collectively viewed over 16 million times, were removed from YouTube following a Reuters report that highlighted their similarity to content under legal challenge.
- Bachchan Legal Action: Bollywood actors Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan have filed a lawsuit in New Delhi seeking to remove and prohibit AI videos infringing their intellectual property, and also challenging YouTube’s AI training policy.
- Major Channel Shutdown: A popular channel named ‘AI Bollywood Ishq’ that hosted 259 videos with 16.5 million total views, including sexually explicit and manipulated content featuring celebrities, is now completely unavailable.
- Platform Stance: YouTube stated the channel was deleted by its creator, affirming that it removes doctored or manipulated content that misleads users as part of its policy against harmful misinformation.