INDIA’S TRADE MARKS REGISTRY recently accepted its first “smell mark” application. The Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks (‘CGPDTM’) last week approved Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd.’s application for “FLORAL FRAGRANCE / SMELL REMINISCENT OF ROSES AS APPLIED TO TYRES” (Class 12: tyres for vehicles) on a proposed-to-be-used basis.
This case forces Indian trademark law to confront an age-old question: can an odour, an inherently subjective sensory perception, function as a legally protectable indicator of commercial origin?
Under Indian law (as under TRIPS), a trademark must be a “mark capable of being represented graphically” and distinctive. Traditionally, this meant visual signs (words, devices, colours). A smell, by contrast, has no visible outline. The Sumitomo mark, therefore, challenged the routine workings of the Trade Marks Act, 1999 (‘the 1999 Act’) and Rules.
As the Order (dated 21/11/2025) notes, “the application was examined and was objected under sections 9(1)(a) and 2(zb) of the Act for lacking distinctiveness and not being supported by a graphical representation, which is a mandatory requirement under the Act.” The applicant appealed through written submissions and hearings, with senior IP counsel Pravin Anand appointed as amicus curiae to advise impartially.
