Saint Teresa's blue-bordered sari an intellectual property

Kolkata: The famous blue-bordered sari of Mother Teresa, who has been canonised as Saint Teresa of Calcutta by the Vatican, has been recognised as an Intellectual Property of the Missionaries of Charity. “The Trade Marks Registry, Government of India, has granted the registration of the trade mark for that pattern of blue border of sari,” Intellectual Property attorney Biswajit Sarkar said.

The diminutive nun of Albanian descent went around the streets of Kolkata since 1948 to be with the poor and the destitutes wearing a white sari with three blue borders, the outer border being wider than the two inner ones. “The blue-designed border on the sari worn by nuns of the Missionaries of Charity was recognised as Intellectual Property for the organisation on September four, 2016, the day the Mother was canonised,” Mr Sarkar said. 

“The Missionaries of Charity do not believe in publicity and as such it was not publicised, but since we are witnessing unscrupulous and unfair usage of the design across the globe, we are now trying to spread awareness among people about the trademark,” Mr Sarkar said. “The blue border pattern is a distinctive symbolic identity of the Missionaries of Charity under the concept of colour trade mark protection,” he said.