Lodha brothers spar over name

More than three years after carving up the real estate empire founded by their father, the Lodha siblings have landed in court.

- Varun Sood

Macrotech Developers Ltd on Monday asked the Bombay High Court to intervene and stop the House of Abhinandan Lodha from using the Lodha name. While Macrotech is led by elder brother Abhishek Lodha, 45, House Of Abhinandan Lodha is led by younger brother Abhinandan Lodha, 43.

The Macrotech petition pressed for an "urgent interim and ad-interim relief" so that the House of Abhinandan Lodha removes "all or any reference to the Lodha trade marks and/or any other mark/logo/label/trade dress identical with and/or deceptively and/or confusingly similar in any manner whatsoever."

The Lodha name has attained distinctiveness and is "extremely popular" due to its open, continuous, exclusive and extensive use and publicity by Macrotech, the petition said. Macrotech is represented by Veritas Legal.

Abhinandan Lodha told Mint that the dispute may have been sparked by the success of his company's plotted land business "which Macrotech Developers is unable to digest." "There is no non-compete as of today not to carry business.

We are very clear that we are into plotted development and not high-rise buildings, and largely operate in locations where Macrotech is not present and this was by choice," the younger Lodha said.