Given India's population surge, greater awareness is more urgently needed than
debating questions of decency
The government, in an advisory issued by the
Information and Broadcasting Ministry on Monday, strictly asked TV channels not
to air advertisements selling and promoting condoms during prime time. The
advisory invoked Rule 7 (7) and Rule 7 (8) of the Cable Television Networks
Rules, 1994, banning an “advertisement which endangers the safety of children
or create in them any interest in unhealthy practices or shows them begging or
in an undignified or indecent manner.” It further states: “.. All TV
channels are hereby advised not to telecast the advertisements of condoms which
are for a particular age group and could be indecent/inappropriate for viewing
by children. Indecent, vulgar, suggestive, repulsive or offensive themes or
treatment shall be avoided in all advertisements."
The development reportedly follows a request made by
the Advertising Standards Council of India
(ASCI) earlier this month to the I&B ministry to take a call on such
ads and their telecast timing. Consequently, the ministry swiftly responded: “It
has been brought to the notice of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
that some channels carry advertisements of condoms repeatedly which are alleged
to be indecent especially for children. Such advertisements may be
telecast between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. to avoid exposure of such
material to children."
Population control and safe sex are an undeniable
goal of the country teeming with hyperactive youth. A recent Times of India
article quotes research published in The Lancet, a respected scientific
journal, that claims that 1.6 crore abortions take place in India annually,
with 81% carried out at homes, mostly with the help of off-the-counter pills.
Take another example: In September, a new condom advertisement, released
just before the Hindu festival Navratri, drew protests from a Surat-based
group. The ad, featuring Sunny Leone, was displayed on hoardings and carried a
message in Gujarati “play but with love” that obviously hinted at the
nine-nights long dancing festival. Of course, cultural pride was at loggerheads
with the messaging and a city-based group Hindu Yuva Vahini staged a protest;
the particular ad was soon pulled back. So what next is on the cards -
surrogate advertising for condoms?
Coming back to the advisory, if the issue was to
"safeguard" children from indecent exposure, there is an ocean of
information out there, other than television, which can evade all types of
censorship unless a blanket ban and trip back to the pre-Internet era is on
mind. These are the perils of having being technologically advanced and
culturally adapted. Why just target condom commercials? Because they deal with
the very pertinent aspect of pleasure and reproduction - and because discussing
the same is still not considered kosher? Well, here's some news -
advertisements of many other products are sensual in nature and put women as
the object of desire even though what they are attempting to sell is a far take
from something pretty useful as condoms - chocolates, mango juices, ice creams,
deodorants, perfumes, underwear, soft drinks, even inverters and
cement(!).
Given the examples above, the government's move, in
targeting condom ads alone, is questionable. On the other hand, if it were to
perform a sweeping censorship of whatever is deemed "indecent" based
on its mysterious, subjective standards - and factor in the brutal crimes
reported 24/7 from all parts of the country - we might have a drastically limited
list of things to see on television. It is a rather ambiguous process of
determining what is "decent."
India's population surge, spike in sexual assaults
and child abuse cannot be denied. Greater awareness is more urgently required
than debating questions of decency. Of course, a prime-time ban is
not a solution. But, let's move away from the ban a bit and focus on the
ads by themselves. Here's the thing, if we leave aside the moral-policing laced
decision, and consider the type of advertisements that exist on Indian
television - it is undeniable that most commercials in general - and condom
advertising in particular - has focussed just on erotica and sensuality. The
same issues and flip sides that are raised now to reject the ban,
unfortunately, they aren't sufficiently raised by the commercials either.
When it comes to condom ads, there are hardly any
glimpses of responsible messaging that promote the responsibility, safety and
birth-control aspects. The need for being more open, by portraying women
as choice-makers is also lacking. While contraceptive ads do picture coy women
intent on respectful family planning, condoms have culturally and commercially
been assigned a strictly male domain. This, when the product is by far the only
popular scientific way to safeguard both partners from sexually transmitted
diseases. Women are vulnerable from a health stand-point if they were only to
rely on contraceptives. But, how many women do actually go and purchase a pack
on their own. That would be too "indecent" even if it were at the
cost of their well-being.
The idea of "decency" is in play with the
notion that it is alright, even macho, if men get into a pharmacy to buy a pack
of condoms. But, more often than not there are scandalised judgements if a
woman does so. A YouTube video captured the comments and discussions that
followed a woman's attempt to buy condoms. The sexist comments, which bring up
the question of decency time and again in the conversation, completely overlook
that fact that sex involves two people and both have equal rights to ensure
their safety.
- First published in The Goan Everyday
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