Janhvi Kapoor 'Chuttamalle' Deepfake Row: Video Taken Down, But Culprit Still Unknown

The Janhvi Kapoor 'Chuttamalle' deepfake controversy has taken a fresh turn after Hyderabad Police reportedly booked a case over the AI-morphed video that circulated online. While the controversial video has been taken down, the identity of the person who created or circulated it has not been publicly confirmed, keeping the focus firmly on the ongoing investigation.

The video used visuals of Janhvi Kapoor from 'Chuttamalle', her popular song with Jr NTR from 'Devara: Part 1', and digitally manipulated them into sexually explicit and degrading content. The clip spread across social media, prompting outrage from the actors and several members of the Telugu film fraternity. Reports said links to a longer version were also being circulated privately.

Jr NTR was among the first to react, calling the video “disgusting, sick and shameless”. He warned that he would pursue every possible legal action against those who created and spread it. NTR also urged people not to watch, download, share or engage with the content and called on governments to bring in stricter regulations against AI misuse.

Chiranjeevi has now called for an industry-wide response. Condemning the incident as “cruel, shameful and completely unacceptable”, he said the matter would be taken up with the Telugu Film Chamber, Producers’ Council and affiliated industry bodies.

The megastar proposed a dedicated committee and support cell to work with Cyber Crime authorities. The proposed mechanism would help people targeted by such abuse, coordinate efforts to remove harmful content and pursue legal action against those responsible. Chiranjeevi also urged the Central and state governments to take stronger measures against AI-generated abuse.

He further appealed to the film fraternity, artists, technicians, associations, audiences and fans to come together. Importantly, he asked people not to circulate the video even while condemning it, but to report such material to social media platforms and cybercrime authorities instead.

The backlash has continued to grow. Vijay Deverakonda described AI-based abuse of this nature as the “digital equivalent of sexual assault” and called for strict action. Khushbu Sundar also stood up for Janhvi, saying a woman’s body should not be treated as content and calling for accountability for those who create, share or amplify such material.

With Hyderabad Police now having booked a case, the controversy has moved from celebrity outrage to a formal law-enforcement matter. However, the person behind the deepfake has not been publicly identified, and there is no publicly confirmed arrest so far.