Mumbai : Filmmaker Amit Jani has approached the Supreme Court against the Delhi High Court's July 27 order directing the removal of the teaser and related promotional material of 'Kala Hiran: The Battle for Legacy', after Salman Khan's plea alleging violation of his personality rights.
Jani said the filmmakers do not agree with the High Court's decision and have filed a Special Leave Petition (SLP) seeking restoration of the teaser and interviews. He also maintained that the film and its teaser do not feature Salman Khan or gangster Lawrence Bishnoi.
"On July 27, the Delhi High Court ordered the removal of the teaser on Salman Khan's petition. We do not agree with this decision. We have gone to the Supreme Court against it to seek restoration of this teaser and all interviews... We have never said in any interview that Salman Khan is connected to the underworld," Jani said.
He added that the filmmakers complied with the High Court's order while challenging its decision before the apex court.
"There is no order to ban the film, just an order to remove one teaser, with which we do not agree," Jani said, stressing that 'Kala Hiran: The Battle for Legacy' itself had not been banned.
The film allegedly draws on public-domain events associated with Salman Khan's 1998 blackbuck poaching case. Before the High Court, Khan had alleged that the teaser portrayed him through a fictional character named "Ayan Khan" and used references to his films 'Dabangg' and 'Sikandar', along with details connected to the blackbuck case.
The High Court's interim order came after the teaser was released on July 17, 2026, followed by its circulation through press releases, promotional videos, social media posts, YouTube videos, podcasts and other content.
The court found prima facie that the material could harm Khan's reputation through fictional character references and film clips. However, it did not issue an order banning the film itself.
Jani's appeal argues that the High Court restrained the teaser without identifying the precise actionable use through which the actor's persona was allegedly appropriated or commercially exploited.
The plea further contends that accepting Khan's position could turn personality rights into a mechanism for restricting artistic, journalistic and historical expression concerning matters in the public domain.
Jani also raised the issue of alleged threats against the filmmakers, saying the matter had been brought before the Supreme Court and authorities.
"We are receiving threats, so if we can't even say that we are receiving threats, that would be the complete murder of democracy. We have told the Supreme Court exactly this..." he said.
Elaborating on the allegations, Jani said, "We are not saying that Salman Khan is their friend. They themselves call and say that Salman is our friend. They are threatening us that if you make a film on Salman Khan, we will kill you. We will throw grenades."
