Mumbai court issues injunction against Carry Minati in Karan Johar defamation case

New Delhi: A Mumbai court has issued an ad-interim injunction restraining YouTuber Ajey Nagar, known as Carry Minati, along with Meta Platforms and other parties, from creating or circulating content deemed objectionable or defamatory towards filmmaker Karan Johar. The order follows a defamation suit filed by Johar over a “roast” video posted on Nagar’s YouTube channel titled Coffee With Jalan, as per the news reports.

According to the court filing, the disputed video drew from the format of Johar’s talk show Koffee With Karan and contained abusive language linked to debates around nepotism in the film industry. Johar argued that the remarks were defamatory and caused reputational harm.

Judge Pandurang Bhosale passed the interim order on February 9, after hearing the matter and also issued John Doe directions to prevent unknown individuals from continuing to circulate the content. The court observed at a preliminary stage that the video appeared to contain defamatory statements and vulgar language directed at the filmmaker. 

It directed that the material be removed and restrained all concerned parties from producing or sharing similar content while the matter is pending. The order also instructed the platform to take down the video and related links.

In his plea, Johar stated that although the video had since been removed from the original channel, it had already received millions of views and continued to circulate through short clips and reposts on social media. He sought urgent relief to prevent further dissemination.

Nagar’s defence submitted that the video and related material had already been deleted and argued that the suit was filed without giving him an opportunity to clarify his position. However, after considering the submissions, the court granted temporary relief, restricting the defendants and unidentified parties from publishing, reposting or otherwise communicating any content considered defamatory or similar in nature until further orders.

The matter will be heard again as the court considers the notice of motion in the defamation proceedings.