‘Dil Afza’ directed to stand down for old favourite ‘Rooh Afza’

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday held that Rooh Afza, a century-old drink, has acquired a reputation whose trademark cannot be infringed by a rival drink known as Dil Afza, which had lost earlier before the Delhi high court.

Dil Afza, which has a name and bottle similar to the popular Rooh Afza, approached the top court claiming that the two products had distinct identities.

Beating this argument down, a bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud said, “It can’t be denied that Rooh Afza has a well-established reputation across India.” Dismissing the appeal filed by Sadar Laboratories Private Ltd, the makers of Dil Afza, the bench, also comprising justices PS Narasimha and JB Pardiwala, said, “Suddenly in 2020 you start selling some sharbat. The high court has held correctly against you.”

The makers of Dil Afza challenged the Delhi high court judgment passed on December 21 which noted that for a person who looks at the label of Dil Afza, he may recall the label of Rooh Afza as both have common ending terms and the meaning of “Rooh” and “Dil” when translated into English are terms used in conjunction.

Hamdard National Foundation, the makers of Rooh Afza, had approached the Delhi high court to restrain Dil Afza. The company submitted the popular drink has been in the market since 1907 while the rival brand started production over a century later in 2018. “They are riding on my goodwill,” said senior advocate Sudhir Chandra. He pointed out deceptive marks on the Dil Afza bottle, which has rings, similar to Rooh Afza.

The top court in its order said, “We are not inclined to entertain the petition under Article 136 of the Constitution of India. The Special Leave Petition is accordingly dismissed.”