Pakistani celebrities have called on authorities to take action against a digital creator for sharing AI-generated videos depicting violent and derogatory treatment of female celebrities, after another content creator, Muhammad Ahsan, publicly criticised the account in a reel posted on social media. The account in question featured a mix of AI-generated content showing deepfakes of male and female celebrities, including actor Hania Aamir, in scenarios depicting physical aggression, alongside separate clips showing the account owner’s deepfake interacting with celebrity likenesses in other manipulated scenarios. Ahsan said the account contained numerous similar clips showing inappropriate and degrading depictions of actors, influencers, and other content creators, and pointed to comments under the videos from other users praising the content as a use of AI technology, alongside a growing wave of public anger calling for the account to be taken down and its creator identified.
In response, several prominent Pakistani actors spoke out publicly against the content. Mahira Khan said the prevalence of such content reflected broader attitudes toward violence against women in Pakistan, while Kinza Hashmi tagged law enforcement authorities in Punjab, Sindh, and Islamabad directly, urging them to take up the matter. Actor Tamkenat Mansoor said producing this kind of content should be treated as illegal if existing law does not already cover it, describing the public reaction in the comments section as evidence that many men are, in her words, just an opportunity away from targeting a woman with similar abuse. Actor Zara Tareen called on anyone who had seen the videos to help identify the creator and file a formal police complaint so that legal consequences could follow.
The incident highlights a persistent gap in Pakistan’s legal framework for addressing AI-generated abuse. The Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) does not contain provisions written specifically for AI-generated or deepfake content, meaning courts and police have had to rely on existing sections, including Section 20 covering online defamation and Section 21 covering offences against dignity and modesty, to prosecute cases involving manipulated media targeting public figures. This lack of dedicated deepfake provisions means legal outcomes vary considerably depending on how individual cases are framed and prosecuted, a gap that legal experts and digital rights advocates have flagged repeatedly as AI generated content becomes more sophisticated and widespread. Last year, Punjab police registered charges under both PECA and the Pakistan Penal Code’s defamation provisions over separate AI-generated deepfake videos targeting Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, showing that law enforcement has previously used existing statutes to pursue deepfake cases involving high profile individuals, even without AI specific legislation in place.
The broader problem of AI-generated abuse targeting women is a documented and worsening global trend, with UN Women estimating that between 16 and 58 percent of women worldwide have experienced some form of digital abuse, and that between 90 and 95 percent of deepfake videos circulating online are sexualised depictions of women. Pakistan has seen growing efforts at the provincial level to address the underlying legal gap, including the Punjab government’s draft Performers’ Digital Identity and Artificial Intelligence Protection Act 2026, which would treat a performer’s voice, facial image, and digital identity as protected intellectual property and require explicit consent before AI-generated performances involving their likeness can be created or used. Whether this latest incident accelerates movement on dedicated national deepfake legislation, or results in concrete legal action against the specific account involved, will likely depend on how quickly law enforcement agencies act on the complaints being filed by affected celebrities and their supporters.
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