Debate over anti-smoking ads on OTT platforms: How Indian films and TV saw warnings come in

Such issues were also discussed when smoking warnings for films and TV shows were introduced a few years ago. It led to alarming visuals that many are familiar with: of cancers, and a sponge being squeezed representing tar accumulation in smokers’ lungs. How did they come about? We explain.

Some of the anti-smoking ads shown before Indian movies. (Screengrabs/ Youtube.com/VitalStrategiesMedia)

Why smoking warnings were introduced in Indian entertainment

A link has often been drawn between the health impact of smoking and how tobacco products are shown to the public. The argument here is that adequate information on how exactly smoking damages health, along with warnings, should be communicated clearly to discourage people from taking up smoking.

In a direct way, this includes the packaging of tobacco products, the graphic warnings accompanying the packets, etc. But the impact of films and television also plays an indirect role, according to multiple studies that raise concerns about their influence on younger audiences.

A 2021 paper (titled ‘Tobacco imagery in entertainment media: evolution of tobacco-free movies and television programmes rules in India’), notes that regulating how smoking is viewed has long been a part of the Indian government’s policy. The Cinematograph Act of 1952 prohibited the “glamorisation” of tobacco and smoking in movies, and the Cable Television Networks Amendment Act of 2000 banned tobacco and alcohol advertising on cable TV.

How did no-smoking messages come to films and TV in India?

According to a report from the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), many factors have contributed to a growing sense of national consensus on tobacco control over the years.

These include increasing awareness of the health aspect, new laws and their enforcement, judicial verdicts such as the one that banned public smoking in 2008, civil society efforts, growing global support for tobacco control, the role played by the World Health Organisation in developing policies for effective action, etc.

India saw such efforts gain momentum in the 21st century. Under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA), which was signed into law in May 2003, the Health Ministry introduced a notification.

It said, “No individual or a person or a character in cinema and television programmes shall display tobacco products or their use.” It added that in films and shows which have been produced before the notification, scenes featuring smoking must have a health warning as a prominent scroll at the bottom of the screen, saying “Smoking causes cancer” or “Smoking kills”.

The rationale for this was that banning tobacco advertisements led tobacco companies to take the indirect advertisement route of showing cigarettes in films – which have massive audiences in India. Other measures that the notification suggested included prohibiting smoking in public places and pictorial health warnings covering 85% of the principal display areas of tobacco products.

However, the rule for banning scenes with smoking in entertainment faced several legal challenges from some filmmakers and actors, who argued it violated their fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression. Director Mahesh Bhatt filed a petition, and he had earlier said, “We are aware of the health hazards due to smoking. But there is already a Censor Board in place to check the glorification of such acts. The film fraternity is with the nation in making people aware against use of tobacco.”

In 2009, the Delhi High Court quashed the notification. “Directors of films should not have multifarious authorities breathing down their necks when indulging in creative act,” Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul said at the time.

The Centre then moved the Supreme Court to challenge the ruling, saying scenes of actors smoking amounted to its glamorisation. The SC stayed the Delhi HC ruling, allowing the rules to come into effect. At the time, there were some differences in the government’s position, with the Health Ministry advocating for the restriction and the I&B Ministry siding with the filmmakers.

Then how did the warnings come about?

Amid this slugfest, a new minister of the I&B Ministry was appointed and there was an attempt to reach a consensus. In 2011, a Health Ministry notification identified new rules on the topic, after consultations and taking into account the views of the I&B Ministry to make them more practical and implementable. A final amendment then came about the next year.

Films and shows made prior to these rules were to have anti-tobacco health spots or messages screened at the beginning and middle of the television programme. These messages would be made available to the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) by the Health Ministry.

Also, an “anti-tobacco health warning as a prominent static message” was to be displayed at the bottom of the television screen when tobacco products were shown on screen.

For new films and TV shows featuring smoking scenes, it said that instead of an outright ban, there should be:

(a) a strong “editorial justification” explaining the necessity of the display of the tobacco products or their use in the film, given to the CBFC;

(b) anti-tobacco health spots, of minimum 30 seconds duration each at the beginning and middle of the films and TV programmes;

(c) a prominent static message at the bottom of the screen when tobacco products are displayed;

(d) an audio-visual disclaimer on the ill effects of tobacco use, of at least 20 seconds duration each, in the beginning and middle of the film and TV programme.

They added that in case of failure to comply on the part of theatre owners of broadcast organisations, they could face punishment – including the suspension of their licenses.

What has implementation been like?

The same study said that in 2017, at the National Consultation on Tobacco-Free Films Policy held in Mumbai, the MoHFW released a study conducted by Vital Strategies, a public health-focused organisation, with support from WHO India.

It said that in 2015, 99 per cent of movies with tobacco imagery implemented at least one element of the film rules while 27 per cent implemented all three elements. Few films or TV shows implemented all of the rules, though.

More broadly, COTPA’s implementation has been lacking in other regards, such as restrictions on the sale of cigarettes near educational institutions. A 2020 study (‘Tobacco Control in India; A Myth or Reality’) found that out of the 307 schools it surveyed across the five states, 85% of the schools violated Section 4 (on public smoking restrictions) and 69% violated Section 6b (prohibition of the sale of tobacco products near educational institutions).

And what is the debate over smoking warnings on OTT platforms?

According to Reuters’ report, Secretary Apurva Chandra of the I&B ministry, which also regulates streaming platforms, “pointed out concerns regarding implementation in respect of existing library of content, foreign content, and inclusion of health spots in the middle of the content” at the recent meeting. He suggested that platforms can consider an appropriate health warning to be displayed when users log in.

In May, India had ordered streaming platforms to insert static health warnings during smoking scenes and at least 30 seconds of anti-tobacco disclaimers at the start and in the middle of each programme. OTT executives raised concerns that the rules could force “editing of millions of hours of existing content, diminish customers’ experience and impinge on creators’ freedom of expression.”