New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday heard a trademark dispute between the India Today Group and Zee Media Corporation Limited over the title of a news show, ‘Duniyadari’.
According to a LiveLaw report, India Today Group alleges that Zee Media has adopted a logo and title in Gurmukhi script (‘ਦੁਨੀਆਂਦਾਰੀ’) for a programme on its regional channel ‘ZEE Punjab Haryana Himachal’ that is “deceptively similar” to its own ‘Duniyadari’ segment aired on the digital platform The Lallantop. The plaintiff claims the show, focusing on global affairs, has been running since 2020 and built a significant following, with some episodes crossing 85 lakh views.
Senior Advocate Asheesh Jain, representing India Today, argued that Zee’s use of the word and design amounted to passing off, particularly targeting Punjabi-speaking audiences similar to the plaintiff’s. He stressed that Zee’s removal of the ‘globe’ element from its logo did not resolve the infringement issue, as the identical word remained in use.
Zee Media’s counsel countered that ‘Duniyadari’ is a generic Hindi term meaning “worldly matters” and cannot be monopolised. The defence noted that India Today’s registration covers only a label mark, not exclusive rights over the word, and pointed to other uses, including a 2013 film title.
Justice Tejas Karia orally suggested Zee consider changing its logo “if you want to come out of this” but clarified that no final view had been taken. Observing that a bilingual viewer might still be confused, the court directed Zee to file its reply by August 22 and posted the next hearing for September 2.
The bench also noted the plaintiff’s openness to a settlement, though India Today insisted it would not permit Zee’s continued use of the ‘Duniyadari’ title for its news show.
