Third, the trademark application has already converted to a grant so no question of abandoning it. Second, the term is not endemic to any one indigenous group or community. But will it do the same with Hakuna Matata? For one, the term does not boast any special religious or spiritual significance. This was in relation to “Coco”, another Disney blockbuster which released last year, and is themed around the Mexican festival.įortunately, in the light of widespread protests, Disney backed down and abandoned its trademark application.
![bwana in india crossword bwana in india crossword](https://www.namespedia.com/image/Bwanya_surname.jpg)
Some years ago, it tried to trademark “Dia de los Muertos”, the name of a Mexican festival meant to commemorate the dead. To make matters worse, this is not first time that Disney has been accused of such misappropriation. While Disney’s actions may pass legal muster, what of ethics? For many see this as a moral issue, triggering memories of an oppressive colonial past. But can continue to sing the song or use the phrase in a non-trademark sense. However, this protection only means that others cannot use it on their goods/services.
![bwana in india crossword bwana in india crossword](https://parabaas.com/PB21/LEKHAGIF21/mKathar21_p8.gif)
In much the same way, if American consumers come to associate “Hakuna Matata” exclusively with Disney’s film and associated merchandise, then it is protectable as a trademark in the US.
![bwana in india crossword bwana in india crossword](https://www.metro.us/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/metro-crossword-puzzle-answers-decembrer-22_4.jpg)
However, this does not mean that the general public is prohibited from continuing to use the term in a descriptive “non-trademark” sense (to bid goodbye or to describe any of the Tata goods/services). The law, therefore, permits the Tata group to appropriate this as a trademark, and prevent others from using it in relation to their goods/services. However, when used in relation to certain goods/services, the very same term denotes an exclusive connotation with the Tata group (at least in India). Take “Tata” for example, a widely used term that means “goodbye”. For the law permits almost any word or phrase to be protected as a trademark, if it comes to be exclusively associated with good/services of the IP owner. In fact, the argument in the online petition that “Disney can’t be allowed to trademark something that it didn’t invent” is a bit off the mark. On a strict reading of trademark law, Disney is well within its rights to do so. Why then did Disney go out of their way to blatantly appropriate an indigenous African phrase as its own trademark? Rather, a Kenyan band (“Them Mushrooms”) deployed this in 1982 for their celebrated single “Jambo Bwana”. What is even more striking is that Disney wasn’t even the first to popularise this term through music. Many have decried this as yet another example of cultural misappropriation by a first world corporation. However, it is only recently that this appropriation began to attract some attention, thanks to Disney’s announcement of a live-action remake of the old classic. Way back in 1994, Disney filed a trademark application for this phrase, which finally converted to a grant in 2003. Little was I to know that even as this number was being belted out at the Indian Law Institute (ILI) in Delhi (the situs of our stress relief session), an online petition was doing the rounds, protesting Disney’s misappropriation of “Hakuna Matata”. Taken together, this Swahili phrase, as the song itself goes, “…means no worries, for the rest of your days. Hakuna translates roughly to “there is/are no” and Matata means “problem(s)”. To this end, I played them ‘Hakuna matata’, a smash hit from Disney’s musical blockbuster The Lion King. A key part of the session involved the use of music to beat stress.
![bwana in india crossword bwana in india crossword](https://cdn.dnaindia.com/sites/default/files/1845019.jpg)
Recently, I did a session on “stress relief” for law students who are part of IDIA (Increasing Diversity by Increasing Access to Legal Education), a project to empower underprivileged communities through legal education.