This week has seen the Mumbai High Court give an incomprehensible ruling on Adult Certified films on TV.
They have placed the onus on what we get on our Television screens, not on the broadcaster but on the cable operator who brings the feed to our homes. It is incomprehensible because the cable operator has no control over the content of the channel. There is one way that the cable operator can be absolutely sure that he is complying with the ruling – and that is by dropping the channel. This in itself has implications on revenue and profitability for the channels concerned. If the channels go ahead and stop buying films with adult certification – then it is going to impact the film production company. Afterall, in today’s day and change cable and satellite rights form a key part of revenues. Also the ruling does not apply to DTH. Nor does it apply to the friendly neighbourhood DVD/VCD wallah!

The interim ruling is in response to a PIL filed to curtail ‘obscenity’ on our television screens. The PIL filed by an earnest, and i would think misguided, petitioner – puts the onus of what children and teenagers watch on the broadcaster, as opposed to the parent. The lack of value systems is not as much a function of what they watch, as how they are brought up. Also, and this is a very big also, violence and sex are not just the domain of feature films. One of the most violent shows on television is Tom and Jerry. As far as ‘exposure’ is concerned – Music videos don’t really leave too much to imagination. And as far as values are concerned – our soaps and serials are not – in any sense of the word – progressive. Also the most adult of all our viewing fare is news – with stories of rape, arson, murder, violence, corruption. Atleast as far as films and serials go -kids know it is fake. That it is role playing by actors. However, misbehaviour of our leaders in parliament – they know is real life. So what next, we censor Parliamentary news because kids will learn violence from our esteemed MP’s?

Also complicating matters is the way our censor board functions. Funnily enough Apaharan – which deals with kidnapping and politics in Bihar – is Certified Adult by the Censor board, and Neal and Nikki which has body parts popping out – all over the screen – and in which sexual innuendo is used like a punctuation mark is certified U. And the fact that nothing apart from films needs a censor certificate.

I think that we slowly need to look at self regulation on part of broadcasters rather than censorship. A mutually agreed consensus on water shed programming rather than a blanket ban. Let the onus of what kids watch be on their parents / guardians rather than the rest of us. Why should the state take over as nanny? And if as a parent you don’t know how to lay down the line – firmly yet gently – then no amount of censorship can prevent the child from sampling the ‘forbidden fruit’.

Finally, when one of the arms of the state starts getting involved in something that should be sorted out at the family level – my alarm bells start going off. Moral policing is a scary prospect however well meaning the person is!