Crowning jewel in protection of unconventional trademarks

The year 2017 was witness to yet another crowning jewel in the history of the Taj Mahal Palace hotel, as it became the first private building in India to be trademarked under the Trade Marks Act, 1999. With this feat, the Taj Mahal Palace hotel has joined the ranks of iconic architectural marvels around the world including the Empire State Building, the Chrysler Building and the Sydney Opera House, which have all secured intellectual property rights in their distinctive building designs.

The Taj Mahal Palace hotel has always been at the forefront of representing India’s rich history and cultural heritage. The hotel, which was built in 1903, even before the Gateway of India, has been serving as a distinctive symbol of Mumbai’s skyline for more than 114 years. Serving as a triangulation point for the Indian Navy to show the way towards the harbour, the hotel has come a long way to being the most recognizable building in the country.

As explained by Rajendra Misra, senior vice president and general counsel of the Taj Hotels Palaces Resorts Safaris, of the vision behind this protection: “One does not need a signboard on the iconic building to identify that it is the Taj Mahal Palace hotel. Such is its distinctiveness. It is, thus, a perfect example of a “trademark” and, with this registration, it today rightfully occupies a coveted position amongst the most iconic buildings in the world.”

Pravin Anand is the managing partner at Anand and Anand, and Geetanjali Visvanathan is a senior associate at the firm