Copyright Law And Traditional Cultural Expression – Protecting Folklore, Indigenous Art Under IP Law
Aradhya Gupta, Amity Law School
ABSTRACT
Cultural heritage lives through the traditions, artistic practices and creative expressions passed from one generation to the next. Traditional Cultural Expressions (TCEs), often associated with folklore, form an important part of the cultural identity and heritage of communities. They include traditional dances, music, paintings, crafts, textiles, patterns, symbols, stories, and performances that have been preserved and developed over generations. India, with its diverse cultural traditions, provides numerous examples, including Madhubani, Warli and Gond paintings, Pattachitra, traditional embroidery and handloom practices. However, protecting these expressions presents significant legal challenges because conventional copyright law is generally based on identifiable authorship, originality, and ownership.
This paper examines the protection available to TCEs under Indian intellectual property law, particularly through copyright, geographical indications, trademarks and industrial designs. It analyses the extent to which these existing mechanisms can address the collective and continuing nature of traditional cultural expressions. The paper also considers the role of cultural institutions, using the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre (NMACC) as a case study to examine how traditional cultural practices can be preserved, presented, and promoted in contemporary cultural spaces.
The study highlights the limitations of the existing Indian intellectual property framework, particularly in relation to community custodianship, attribution, prior informed consent and benefit-sharing. It argues for consideration of a complementary sui generis framework that can recognise community interests while maintaining sufficient space for education, research, reinterpretation and legitimate artistic creativity. The objective is to develop a balanced approach that protects cultural heritage without restricting the natural evolution of living traditions.
Keywords: Traditional knowledge, Traditional cultural expressions, Copyrights, Expressions of folklore, Legal Framework.
