Press "Enter" to skip to content

PIL by hospital seeks Rs 10 crore penalty on actor Vijay for posing with cigarette in ‘Sarkar’ poster

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: A writ plea has been filed in the Madras High Court to direct the actor and producers of Tamil film Sarkar to pay a compensation of Rs 10 core to a government hospital in the city. Claiming that the film’s first-look poster, in which Vijay appears smoking a cigarette, is in clear violation of the Cigarettes and other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of advertisement and regulations of trade and commerce, production, supply and distribution) Act, 2003, S Cyril Alexander wanted the court to direct actor Vijay and director AR Murugadoss and the production house to pay `10 crore each to the Cancer Institute.

Entertaining the petition, the first bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice P T Asha ordered notice to the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the State government and the CBFC, returnable by July 16.

The Act clearly prohibits any person under a contract or otherwise from promoting or agreeing to promote the use or consumption of cigarettes or any other tobacco products. But contrary to the law, in the first-look poster released on June 31, actor Vijay appears with a cigarette in mouth, heaps of smoke curling up around his mouth, which is punishable under the Act, petitioner said. This apart, the poster has not contained the certification prescribed by the TN Compulsory Censorship of Publicity Materials Act, 1987, he added.

“The image of the actor in the State, his character inside and outside the cinema industry, is an example for his fans. Such publicity shows their lack of interest in the welfare of public at large by both defying the law and creating a bad picture of heroism,” the petitioner contended.

Notices to CBFC, Centre and State
Entertaining the petition, the first bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice P T Asha ordered notice to the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the State government and the CBFC, returnable by July 16

Source: The New Indian Express