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Aashiqui: Delhi High Court restricts T-Series to use title in response to trademark infringement lawsuit filed by Mukesh Bhatt
The Delhi High Court barred T-Series from using titles like 'Tu Hi Aashiqui' or 'Tu Hi Aashiqui Hai,' providing significant relief to filmmaker Mukesh Bhatt over the 'Aashiqui' mark.
The Delhi High Court has given filmmaker Mukesh Bhatt a significant relief by barring Bhushan Kumar’s T-Series and its affiliates from using the titles ‘Tu Hi Aashiqui,’ ‘Tu Hi Aashiqui Hai,’ or any other titles with the term ‘Aashiqui.’ This ruling represents a major victory for Bhatt.
According to Bar and Bench, Justice Sanjeev Narula issued an interim injunction, acknowledging that the 'Aashiqui' title is not a standalone term but is integral to a well-known film series with successful entries in 1990 and 2013. The court's decision grants Mukesh Bhatt temporary relief by barring the defendant and their representatives from using the titles 'Tu Hi Aashiqui,' 'Tu Hi Aashiqui Hai,' or any other title that incorporates the 'Aashiqui' mark for their upcoming film.
As per the same report, the Court highlighted that, even if viewers might not perceive a direct relationship between the T-Series film and the previous Aashiqui installments, there remains a significant potential for initial confusion. This issue arose after Mukesh Bhatt’s company, Vishesh Films Private Limited, took legal action against T-Series’ Super Cassettes Industries Limited. The conflict began when both companies sought to produce a third installment of the Aashiqui' series.
Vishesh Films claims that Bhushan Kumar's T-Series' proposed titles, 'Tu Hi Aashiqui' or 'Tu Hi Aashiqui Hai,' infringe on the established rights and branding of the franchise, prompting the court case.
Bhatt and T-Series collaborated on the successful films Aashiqui (1990) and Aashiqui 2 (2013). They had previously discussed producing a third installment. Bhatt asserts that both he and T-Series share joint ownership of the previous films and any sequels within the Aashiqui franchise. He alleges that T-Series is trying to take over the franchise and produce the third film under titles like Aashiqui 3 or Tu Hi Aashiqui without Vishesh Films' approval.
T-Series argued in court that Mukesh Bhatt’s company had not challenged the use of the term ‘Aashiqui’ in the 2021 film Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui, also produced by T-Series. They claimed this inaction suggested Bhatt’s company had relinquished its rights to the term. Justice Narula, however, found no grounds for this argument and affirmed that Bhatt’s rights to the trademark were unaffected by the lack of objection.
The court said, "In this case, considering the fact that the parties have previously publicised the possibility of co-producing a third installment to the Aashiqui Franchise, there exists a strong public association of the 'Aashiqui' mark with the continuing series of films.”
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