Mumbai: Tobacco control activists across the country are up in arms against the government’s 
willingness to remove the anti-tobacco scroll in movies. NGOs and public health professionals alike have come up strongly and are vehemently opposing the government’s soft stand taken on issues related to tobacco control in recent times that seemingly favour the pro-tobacco lobby.
Devika Chadha, Vice President – Operations, Salaam Bombay Foundation, says “The removal of the anti-tobacco scroll will be a big setback to our tobacco control efforts. Indian movies and actors have very strong influence on youths. Understanding the fact, the pop-up warning spots were introduced. Restricting exposure of children and adolescents to tobacco on films/television is the single most effective public health intervention any society or government can make.”
Tobacco control activists, already upset over a series of gaffes by senior political party leaders, hint at a pre-meditated advocacy program being implemented by the pro-tobacco lobby
.As per Union health ministry guidelines, a pop-up message against smoking has to be shown whenever there is any scene in a film depicting smoking. The plea by the filmmakers comes even as a controversy has been sparked over remarks by political parties on the use of tobacco.
India has the largest film producing industry and films that play a major role in the process of social change. Their impact on young minds cannot be ignored. There are several empirical studies and global evidences which show that depiction of tobacco usage in movies increases the risk of initiation of tobacco use among the usage in an indirect manner.
Source : Lokesh Shastri