April 2, 2025: The recent trend of turning images into Studio Ghibli-inspired art using AI has taken the internet by storm. While many have embraced the unique, whimsical style of the popular Japanese animation studio, singer Vishal Dadlani has voiced strong disapproval of the practice.
Through an Instagram story, the Indian Idol judge and renowned singer criticized the trend, calling it “AI plagiarism.” Vishal, who has composed tracks for Bollywood hits like Om Shanti Om, Dostana, and Bang Bang!, expressed his discomfort with AI tools replicating an artist’s life work, particularly the iconic art style of Studio Ghibli. He also pointed out the environmental implications of generating these AI images.
“I’m not sharing any of the Studio Ghibli style images you guys have made of or for me,” Dadlani wrote. “I just can’t bring myself to support AI’s plagiarism of an artist’s life’s work. Not to mention, the environmental horror that those images are. Please do NOT make any more. Thank you.”
The Studio Ghibli-inspired trend has flooded social media with altered images of celebrities, politicians, and others, all transformed into dreamy, colorful characters that resemble the famed animation style. The tool used, known as Ghibli Diffusion, allows users to input text and generate AI-generated artwork that mimics the soft colors, fine details, and ethereal feel associated with Studio Ghibli films.
While fans have enjoyed experimenting with the trend, Vishal Dadlani’s stance highlights the ethical concerns surrounding AI-generated art, and how it impacts the original artists and their intellectual property. The debate around AI art continues to grow, with more artists and creators voicing their opinions on its potential harm to creative industries.