Nora Fatehi is embroiled in a Rs 3 crore defamation lawsuit filed by Dunes Aviation, which claims her ‘Lego airplane’ comments on social media severely damaged its reputation and commercial operations.
Photograph: Kind courtesy Nora Fatehi/Instagram
Key Points
- Nora Fatehi is facing a Rs 3 crore defamation suit from Dunes Aviation.
- The lawsuit alleges Fatehi’s ‘derogatory and reckless’ social media comments, calling a chartered aircraft a ‘Lego airplane,’ caused significant reputational and commercial damage.
- Beyond damages, the suit seeks removal of content and a public clarification from the actor.
An aviation company has filed a Rs 3 crore (Rs 30 million) civil defamation suit against Nora Fatehi at a Gandhinagar court in Gujarat, alleging her ‘derogatory and reckless’ comments on social media calling its chartered aircraft a ‘Lego airplane’ severely damaged its reputation. Senior Civil Judge R Agarwal will hear the matter on September 25.
Defamation Suit, Company’s Claims
According to the suit filed by Dunes Aviation, Fatehi recorded videos inside a Cessna Citation CJ2 aircraft during a Mumbai-Jaipur flight last December, describing the aircraft as a ‘miniature’, a ‘toy’ and a ‘Lego airplane’ and posted them on her Instagram handle.
The company alleged that ‘reckless’ statements made by the actor, who has more than 4.6 crore (46 million) followers, triggered booking cancellations and severely hurt its commercial operations.
The suit, filed in April, stated that Fatehi’s statements were ‘reckless, irresponsible, and made without any technical knowledge, verification or factual basis’.
Dunes Aviation said that owing to Fatehi’s substantial follower base, her ‘reckless statements’ have caused ‘serious reputational damage, loss of goodwill and adverse commercial impact’ to the company. The company stated it suffered a 15 to 20 per cent drop in bookings and a rise in cancellations.
It said the aircraft was standard and ideally sized for the journey undertaken by the defendant, is fully DGCA-certified, airworthy and lawfully operated under a valid NSOP.
Apart from Rs 3 crore (Rs 30 million) in damages, the suit also sought the court’s direction for immediate removal of all contents from social media platforms containing the statement or references to the aircraft, and a public clarification by the actor.
Photograph curated by Satish Bodas/Rediff
