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A trademark on a building’s image does not automatically give its owner control over every painting, photograph or other depiction of that building. It can matter when the image is used in a registered commercial context as a sign of brand or source. Where that boundary falls depends on the registration and the specific use—and uncertainty about it can still make artists and publishers cautious.
Which Mumbai buildings were reported as trademarked?
Scroll.in reported on 16 April 2019 that the facade of the Taj Mahal Palace hotel was registered as a trademark in June 2017, followed by the Bombay Stock Exchange’s Phiroze Jeejeebhoy Towers in June 2018. Those dates describe the chronology reported in 2019; they do not establish either building’s current registration status or the full scope of its registration. Scroll.in’s report is useful for understanding the public debate at the time.
The reporting described the two cases differently. IHCL executive vice-president Rajendra Misra said the hotel sought to protect and underline its brand’s distinctiveness. Scroll.in reported that IHCL required permission and charged fees case by case for some commercial depictions of the Taj facade; the restrictions described in the article did not cover non-commercial media publication. At the time, the BSE had not yet framed guidance for non-commercial uses. These are reported positions from 2019, not verified current policies.
What a trademark does—and does not—cover
India’s Trade Marks Act, 1999 addresses infringement in section 29 and limits on the effect of registration in section 30. Section 30 includes use to identify the proprietor’s goods or services, subject to honest commercial practices and safeguards against unfair advantage or detriment. The registered mark’s scope, the goods or services listed, any conditions, and the circumstances of a particular use all matter. Registration is not, by itself, a universal monopoly over every image of a building. Read the Trade Marks Act, 1999.
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The practical question is not simply whether a work shows a trademarked building. It is whether the image is being used in a way that falls within the registration and functions as a brand or source identifier, among other relevant circumstances. A depiction in a painting, a skyline illustration, an editorial photograph and a commercial product may raise different questions. The available reporting and legal materials do not settle every possible use.
Can an artist paint the Taj Mahal Palace or sell it on a T-shirt?
A painting of the hotel as part of Mumbai’s skyline is not automatically prohibited just because the facade has been registered as a trademark. Nor does the registration alone establish that every T-shirt bearing the image can be sold without permission. The product, presentation, relevant registration terms and whether buyers could understand the image as indicating the hotel’s sponsorship or the seller’s source can all affect the analysis.
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Scroll.in’s 2019 report records the disagreement over where that boundary lies. Misra said, “Getting this trademark is unconventional, but I think it is something we are rightfully entitled to.” Mumbai intellectual-property lawyer Inika Charles said, “The general rule of thumb is that trademark registration does not give the owner a universal monopoly over the mark, and trademark registration is subject to certain restrictions.” Intellectual-property lawyer and NASSCOM policy analyst Devika Agarwal argued, “A reasonable man would know that the hotel is different from the artist who made the painting or the apparel company which sold the t-shirt.” These quotations express positions in the reported debate; they are not a court ruling on every artwork or product.
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- Who owns the registration, and what exact image or mark does it cover?
- Which goods or services are listed, and are there conditions attached?
- Does the image identify the artist or seller, or could it suggest the hotel’s sponsorship or connection?
- Is the context editorial, artistic or commercial, and how is the image presented?
- Does a separate copyright claim concern the particular photograph or artwork being used?
Why trademark is different from copyright
A building-image trademark and copyright in a particular photograph are different rights. A trademark concerns the registered sign in its relevant commercial scope; a copyright claim may concern a specific protected photograph or other work. In its 30 August 2024 judgment in The Indian Hotels Company Limited v. Manoj, the Delhi High Court described claims involving registered TAJ marks separately from claims about copyrighted content and photographs, including photographs of the Taj Mahal Palace. The case shows that more than one kind of right can be asserted in a dispute; it does not create a universal rule against independent artistic depictions. Read the judgment.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How this can affect artistic freedom
The concern is not only whether a particular artist would ultimately be found to infringe a trademark. If creators cannot tell what requires permission—or expect case-by-case licensing costs and uncertainty—they may avoid depicting a landmark or using the image commercially before any court considers the merits. Scroll.in’s 2019 coverage presented that chilling-effect concern alongside IHCL’s stated aim of protecting brand distinctiveness.
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For artists and publishers, the practical takeaway is to distinguish a depiction from an apparent brand use, and to check the specific registration and current guidance before committing to a commercial use that could imply a connection with the owner. The 2019 report does not verify today’s policies or the full registration specifications, and the cited legal materials do not decide every independent artwork scenario. This is general information, not legal advice for a particular project.
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