<\/p>\n
Film stars are supposed to set an example, but how many of them are actually doing so? While actors like Farhan Akhtar and Kartik Aaryan have refused to endorse harmful products like alcohol, gutka and cigarettes, other A-listers of Hindi cinema continue to sell ‘death’ manifested in consumer products which have no business being available in the public domain.<\/p>\n
Are Indian actors obsessed with making money at the cost of their conscience?<\/p>\n
Salman\u00a0Khan may heave a sigh of relief. The Rajasthan High Court has offered him a huge relief\u00a0in\u00a0a case\u00a0related\u00a0to the endorsement of unhealthy products. Justice Anoop Singh\u2019s court stayed the bailable warrant issued by the Jaipur District Consumer Commission-II.<\/p>\n
The court imposed this stay while hearing petitions filed by Salman Khan and others. The commission summoned Salman Khan four times with a bailable warrant, but the warrant has not yet been served to Salman Khan. During the hearing on Monday, the commission expressed displeasure and gave Salman Khan a final chance, stating either Salman appears on April 13, else arrest warrants would be issued against him.<\/p>\n
However, now after the High Court\u2019s stay, Salman Khan will not have to appear before the Jaipur Consumer Commission.<\/p>\n
This\u00a0incident should\u00a0serve as a warning to prominent stars who endorse cancerous products\u00a0in the garb of selling some other\u00a0non-toxic\u00a0product.<\/p>\n
Law forbids\u00a0the CBFC\u00a0from granting certification\u00a0to\u00a0paan masala and alcohol ads. Therefore, the ads for these products being broadcast\u00a0are illegal. Actors who are part of such ads should know\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0participating in an illegal activity.<\/p>\n
Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgan and Akshay Kumar who should know better, are brazenly selling ‘cancer’ (a.k.a\u00a0 gutka, paan masala) in the guise of promoting \u2018kesar\u2019 (saffron) . \u2018Bolo Zubaan Kesari\u2019 is a famous marketing slogan for Vimal Pan Masala, often marketed as \u201cVimal Elaichi\u201d or \u201cKesar Yukt\u201d. Ajay Devgn, Shah Rukh Khan and Akshay Kumar promote these product as a premium mouth freshener, though it is strongly associated with pan masala and tobacco products.<\/p>\n
\u2018James\u00a0Bond\u2019\u00a0Pierce\u00a0Brosnan\u00a0claimed\u00a0he had no idea about the\u00a0deleterious side effects\u00a0of\u00a0gutka and paan masala when he\u00a0endorsed one of those products.<\/p>\n
Pahlaj Nihalani who served as the chairperson of the Central Board of Film Certification spoke on the paan masala issue. He\u00a0told this\u00a0writer, \u201cThe\u00a0Censor Board of Film Certification (CBFC) had placed a complete ban on gutka ads. We do not even consider paan masala and any tobacco-related advertisement for censor certification. In other words, no ads related to tobacco products can be submitted to the censor board.\u201d<\/p>\n
So how did they end up being shown on various home viewing media, including many mainstream TV channels?<\/p>\n
Wherever they are shown, they are done without censor certification.<\/p>\n
In fact, Nihalani has a larger question to ask, \u201cAt a time when the government is coming down heavily on all potentially harmful products, why are no eyebrows raised when paan masala, cigarette and alcohol ads are\u00a0not only endorsed by top stars but also screened through cable networks and even\u00a0on television\u00a0in cleverly veiled language that pretends to be selling soda instead of whiskey?\u201d<\/p>\n
The\u00a0answer in one\u00a0word is, money.<\/p>\n
These gutka-alcohol brands offer astronomical sums to the A-listers for two-minute ads. Recently, Kartik Aaryan said no to around 8-9 crore offer to endorse paan masala. This is a rare example of an actor prioritising principles over profit.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n