Best tweets on government banning condom ads during daytime
India is a weird country. It has widespread illiteracy and ever wider spread anxiety - about anything its government considers anti-sanskari.
When the world is heading towards making Bluetooth-connected condom rings that can measure one's thrust, India’s ministry of information and broadcasting decided that it is important that the airing of suggestive condom ads be limited between 10pm and 6am, citing that some of the condom commercials have a tendency to be indecent and that it may affect children. How, a condom ad would affect a child is not something one can fathom, but if the ministry says so, then it must be true.
As it happens, this move was triggered by a request from the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) – a self-regulatory, voluntary, non-governmental organisation of the advertising industry in India – which sought suggestion from the ministry on whether or not it should be possible to restrict the telecast of condom advertisements with “explicit sexual content” between 11pm and 5am, something they feel is outside of what is considered as “family time” viewing, after numerous complaints from sanskaari viewers.
To the outsider, a move like this would seem crazy. After all, India is the second most populous country in the world. In fact, within the next seven years, India is set to overtake China to become the world's most populous country. But something as absurd as this is just a regular Tuesday in a country where a former health minister suggested that fidelity instead of condoms would be a better measure to prevent the spread of AIDS.
The levels of sanskar in the government should never be underestimated. But thankfully, folks on social media seem rational enough to feel exasperated at the government’s short-sightedness.
Such an action, while being inherently backward and almost laughable, is really futile. Information on sex, condoms and general pornography can be easily sourced on the internet. For the government to try and be extra careful about television is plainly unnecessary. But one has to ask as why the government would want to do something like this. Are they afraid that children will ask more questions? Are they afraid that sex will corrupt young minds? Or are they just afraid that talking about sex is against the Indian culture and that condom ads can lead to that?
Whatever the case may be, one thing is certain. This ban has given everyone a reason to talk about contraceptives and sexual health. And for that we have only the ministry of I&B to thank.
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