VOI World/ Astha Pandey
India has marked a major shift in its intellectual property regime by accepting its first-ever olfactory trademark, this move signals the country’s readiness to embrace modern, non-traditional branding tools.
In a decision that stands out in India’s trademark history, the Trade Marks Registry has formally accepted an application for a scent-based trademark linked to a rose-like fragrance used on tyres. The application of which was originally filed in March 2023 by Sumitomo Rubber Industries of Japan, had been under review because Indian law has long required trademarks to be visually representable.
The landmark approval came after the Registry concluded that the fragrance description, a floral, rose-reminiscent scent exclusively tied to the tyres, met the legal standards of clarity, precision and objective representation. The company supported its claim with a detailed scientific depiction of the scent profile, including an innovative graphic mapping used to satisfy the statutory requirement of “graphical representation” under the Trade Marks Act, 1999.
By allowing this mark to proceed to public advertisement, India has effectively opened the door for “sensory trademarks,” a separate category widely recognised in jurisdictions like the EU and the US but rarely acknowledged in the Indian system until now.
For Indian brands, this development could be transformative. Smell-based identifiers are often more emotionally memorable than logos or colours, and their legal recognition gives companies a new frontier to build unique brand identity.
This decision is being read by analysts as the beginning of an era in which Indian trademark law grows beyond traditional sight-and-sound marks. As global companies increasingly use scent, texture, holography, and other sensory cues in their branding, India’s willingness to recognise such marks positions its IP ecosystem closer to global standards.
For a country known for its innovation-heavy consumer markets from perfumes to confectionery to lifestyle products, this ruling is historic and will shape the future in which distinctiveness can be protected far more creatively.
India’s first scent trademark is more than a legal milestone. It marks the first of my many steps India will take to open its doors for non-conventional brand expression.
