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Social media influencer Gaurav Taneja, widely recognized as "The Flying Beast," has landed in legal trouble after Castrol India Ltd. filed a copyright infringement case against him. The Bombay High Court intervened by issuing a temporary injunction, restraining Taneja from using Castrol’s creative materials and demanding that he remove a promotional video from his social media platforms.

The case stems from a video Taneja posted, initially featuring Castrol’s “Castronomy” campaign—a marketing initiative that includes a zero-gravity flight experience. Taneja, who participated in the campaign, edited the video to remove Castrol’s promotional elements before sharing it online. Castrol claimed this action violated its copyright over the creative content used in the campaign.

Justice RI Chagla, hearing the case, acknowledged that Castrol held exclusive copyright over the materials involved. The court found that Taneja’s alteration of the video and subsequent upload was unauthorized and infringed upon Castrol’s rights. The court ruled that Taneja’s actions were not only unauthorized but showed an intent to bypass Castrol’s copyrighted material, as evidenced by his removal of the promotional content.

In light of the infringement, the court determined that the balance of convenience favored Castrol, prompting the injunction. As part of the ruling, Taneja was ordered to take down the edited video from all his social media channels.

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Prepared by : Drashti S. Varmora (Advocate)