Sholay
The Delhi High Court has held that “Sholay” is the title of an “iconic film” which, as an icon, cannot be treated as devoid of protection and that the use of the film’s title has been prohibited by those who are allegedly are misusing it. , The High Court, which observed that some films like ‘Sholay’ cross the boundaries of simple words, also awarded a compensation of Rs 25 lakh to the makers of the film – Sholay Media and Entertainment Pvt Ltd and Sippy Films Pvt Ltd. Which filed a lawsuit against individuals using the popular movie title to run their business.
Justice Pratibha M Singh, while dealing with the trademark litigation, observed that titles and films are capable of being recognized under the trademark law. The judge said the case was contested for more than 20 years and the adoption of the mark ‘Sholay’ by the defendants to sell DVDs of the film on their websites etc. was “clearly malicious and dishonest” and cost 25 as Rs. Lakhs of rupees were given. and awarded damages to the plaintiffs and given three months time to pay the amount to the defendants.
“Accordingly, the Respondent, their directors, partners, owners, and any person acting on their behalf shall be prohibited from using the name ‘Sholay’ in connection with any goods and services and use of the domain name ‘Sholay.com’ Making any reference to the film ‘Sholay’ or using any picture or clippings from the said film, as well as selling goods using the name Sholay or making any reference to the said cinematographic film, the court said in its order issued on May 23 any image.
The word “Sholay” is the title of an iconic film, and consequently, as a mark associated with the film, manufactured and no longer vested in the plaintiff, cannot be considered devoid of protection.
Few movies cross the limit of simple words and the title of the film ‘Sholay’ is one of them. Titles and movies are capable of being recognized under trademark law and ‘Sholay’ in India would be a classic example of such a case.”
The court restrained the defendants from using the ‘Sholay’ mark or any variation of the name on the Internet or as a metatag in the source code and directed the plaintiffs to transfer the infringing domain names.
“If there is one film that transcends generations of Indians, it is ‘Sholay’. The said film, its characters, dialogues, setting and box office collections are legendary. Undoubtedly, ‘Sholay’ is India’s greatest in the history of Indian cinema. One of the biggest, record breaking films of all time.”
“In the present case, the Respondents have fought this matter for more than 20 years. The adoption of the ‘Sholay’ mark by the Respondent was clearly malicious and dishonest, infringing upon the use of logo, design, film on the Respondent’s website. DVD sales of ‘Sholay’ etc.,” it said. ,
The plaintiffs, represented by advocates Praveen Anand and Dhruv Anand of law firm Anand and Anand, filed suit against the defendants for indulging in several infringing activities including registering the domain name ‘HYPERLINK’.http://www.sholay.com” ,www.sholay.com’Publishing a magazine using the mark/name ‘Sholay’ and selling merchandise using scenes and names from the film released on August 15, 1975.
The defendants sought to justify their use of the plaintiff’s mark on a number of grounds, including that the title of the film does not deserve protection, that there is no potential for confusion on the Internet, and that ‘Sholay’ is a dictionary. The word is.
It was submitted that the plaintiff’s intention was to extort money from the defendants who had created a popular website called ‘Hyperlink’.http://www.sholay.com” \nwww.sholay.com’Registered in the United States of America.