MELBOURNE, 27 July 2026: The red bottle of Rooh Afza is a summer staple from Lucknow to Lahore, but behind the sweet syrup is a century-old trademark dispute now playing out in shops across Australia, leading to litigation on the issue. It remains to be seen what happens as the case progresses and Rooh Afza’s from India and Pakistan keep selling in Indian/South Asian grocery shops across Australia.
The company from Pakistan filed Application No. 2073320 with a priority date of March 4, 2020, covering Class 5 items like medicinal syrups and dietetic beverages by Hamdard Laboratories (Waqf) Pakistan.
The Indian entity, Hamdard National Foundation, filed a Notice of Intention to Oppose the registration in Australia, reports reveal.
One Drink, Two Hamdards
Rooh Afza — “refresher of the soul” — was formulated in 1906 by Hakim Hafiz Abdul Majeed in Ghaziabad. After Partition in 1948, the company split into three: Hamdard India, Hamdard Laboratories Waqf Pakistan, and Hamdard Bangladesh. All three continued making Rooh Afza using the same unpatented recipe.
For decades both the Indian and Pakistani versions have been exported globally, including to Australia where large South Asian communities buy it during Ramadan and summer.
The Core Dispute
The fight isn’t about who invented it. It’s about trademark, consumer confusion, and brand goodwill.In India:
Delhi High Court has sided firmly with Hamdard India. In 2022 the court ordered Amazon.in to take down listings of Rooh Afza manufactured by Hamdard Pakistan, saying consumers were being misled into thinking it was the Indian product. The court later granted a permanent injunction barring anyone from selling ROOH AFZA syrups identical to Hamdard India’s registered mark.
In 2023, the Supreme Court upheld another ruling that gave Rooh Afza “immense goodwill” and “high degree of protection”, even blocking a rival Dil Afza sharbat for being deceptively similar.In Australia:
In Australia, there has been no Federal Court case or ban. Instead, both Indian and Pakistani Hamdard bottles sit side-by-side on shelves in Melbourne, Sydney and other Australian cities. The legal focus here is consumer law, not trademark exclusion.
Under ACCC rules, importers must clearly state “Made in India” or “Made in Pakistan” to avoid misleading shoppers. IP Australia records show both entities have sought trademark protection in Class 32 for beverages, but there is no reported 2025-2026 opposition or judgment between them.
According to Hamdard India – ” We have an ongoing trademark litigation in Australia with a Pakistani entity namely ‘Hamdard Laboratories Waqf Pakistan’. “Hamdard Laboratories Waqf Pakistan’ is also selling their own Rooh Afza sharbat from Pakistan in Australia and we are trying to stop them from infringing our registered trademark Rooh Afza in Australia.”
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