SBI removes late Pandit Ravi Shankar’s post of him playing guitar after backlash

Delhi: On April 7, SBI posted an image of the late sitar maestro Pandit Ravi Shankar on the bank’s social media platforms to commemorate his birth anniversary. 

However, to everyone’s shock, the image didn’t show Shankar playing the sitar, but instead, the guitar. 

The post featured the caption: "SBI pays homage to the Sitar Maestro and Bharat Ratna Awardee Pandit Ravi Shankar," accompanied by the hashtag "#SBICelebratesTheLegends".

While the individual depicted in the post bore a resemblance to the esteemed musical figure, online users remained sceptical. Some criticised the image, suggesting it was AI-generated, while one user mentioned they were unable to locate any photographs of Ravi Shankar playing the guitar.

Consequently, SBI promptly removed the image from its social media platforms.

This isn't the first instance of brands encountering trouble for using GenAI-generated creatives featuring faces resembling individuals without their consent.

Recently, BestMediaInfo.com reported on Yatra.com's full-page ad in TOI, which featured a GenAI image of a girl bearing a striking resemblance to a model from ImagesBazaar. 

Neither the model nor ImagesBazaar had permitted Yatra.com to use the face. Yatra clarified that it licensed the image from Adobe Stock.

In the past, the ed-tech brand upGrad used the likeness of Google CEO Sundar Pichai in an advertisement.

Similarly, Zomato, a food delivery platform, featured footballer Lionel Messi, actor Leonardo DiCaprio, and Tesla CEO Elon Musk in one of its videos