The Delhi High Court, Image credit: PTI
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court fined a website Rs 25 lakh for using the name and scenes of the Bollywood film "Sholay" and the sale of things associated with the film, IANS reported.
The bench of Justice Prathiba M Singh restrained the website from using the logo, designs and selling the DVD of the film on the internet.
The order read, "The adoption of the mark 'SHOLAY' by the defendants was clearly mala fide and dishonest, owing to the use of the infringing logo, designs, selling of the DVD of the film 'Sholay' on the defendants' website, etc. For the reasons contained above, this court is convinced that this is a fit case for award of costs to the Plaintiffs. Accordingly, the present suit is decreed for a sum of Rs 25,00,000 as costs and damages, in terms of the relief of the Plaint."
The website had contented that "Sholay.com" is a website on the internet, used by educated persons, therefore leading to a lesser likelihood of confusion.
But court responded to the argument that the platform is used by millions at the present who might be educated or illiterate. In the current era, the internet has become a major medium for "dissemination, communication and empowerment to the common man". Thus, the court cannot accept the argument that the internet is only used by educated persons and anyone could make the connection between the movie and the defendant's site, it said.
The court added that the content of a movie is not merely for theatrical screening in recent times, as it is also run on online platforms. "Thus, the internet has itself created an additional market for 'Sholay', which is a film nearly 50 years old. The adoption by the defendants is with complete knowledge of the plaintiffs' film, especially considering that the defendants' companies are being run by Indians, who are more than likely to be aware of the film 'Sholay'. The goods and services being offered can be considered as being offshoots emanating from the plaintiffs," the court observed.