MS Dhoni’s ‘Captain Cool’ trademark bid faces a legal bouncer

MS Dhoni’s ‘Captain Cool’ trademark bid faces a legal bouncer (AFP Photo)

Former India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni's application for a trademark of the term "Captain Cool" has been opposed by the law company KAnalysis Attorneys at Law, which cites significant procedural errors, a lack of proof of earlier usage, and the mark's generic nature.

Notably, last month, the Trademarks Registry, Kolkata Office, "accepted and advertised" the cricketer's June 2023 application. On June 16, 2025, the trademark was published in the journal to solicit objections. Within 120 days after June 16, if no one objects or opposes the trademark, it will be approved.

The law firm has strongly objected to the registry accepting the application, according to a news statement.

Under activist Nilanshu Shekhar, the opposition asserts:

"- the application was originally filed on a "proposed to be used" basis and later amended to claim use since 2008—without any supporting affidavits or commercial evidence such as invoices, advertisements, or user data.

"-further the phrase “Captain Cool” is widely known as a descriptive, laudatory term and has been used in the cricketing world well before Dhoni's association with it.

"-The Registry accepted the mark despite an unresolved citation of a prior registered trademark and without serving mandatory rectification notices.

"-The applicant has claimed acquired distinctiveness without providing any substantial proof of widespread recognition or commercial exploitation of the term “Captain Cool” in the relevant class of services."

Class 41, which deals with education, training, entertainment, sports, and culture, is the category under which Dhoni filed his trademark registration. Dhoni has applied to protect the rights to "Captain Cool" in domains pertaining to coaching and sports training.

Under Section 21 of the Trade Marks Act of 1999, the case will now go through opposition proceedings.