The Parliamentary Standing Committee convened with three industry organizations on Friday, December 20, to discuss vulgar content available on streaming platforms. The committee firmly instructed the industry bodies to address obscene content on OTT platforms, warning that the government would bring new laws to regulate such content if necessary.
The committee invited three industry organizations: the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), the Indian Motion Picture Producers’ Association (IMPPA), and the Motion Picture Association (MPA).
The meeting, chaired by MP Nishikant Dubey, was attended by Members of Parliament Priyanka Chaturvedi, S. Niranjan Reddy, Karthikeya Sharma and others. Sanjay Jaju, Secretary of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting; Prasoon Joshi, Chairperson of the CBFC; Uday Singh, Managing Director of the MPA; and Abhay Sinha, President of the IMPPA, spoke at length about tackling vulgarity in content.
Abhay Sinha from the IMPPA emphasized the importance and reliability of self-regulation for content creators in the OTT space, while Uday Singh of the MPA cited adherence to global standards of regulation.
Abhay Sinha of the IMPPA stated, “We have clearly communicated our stance on the issue to the committee. We will be organizing a meeting with all stakeholders in the second week of January to discuss the matter in greater detail and seek a solution to the issue raised by the government.”
A source present during the meeting said, “We will engage with content creators to find a resolution. Committee members highlighted multiple instances of obscene content on OTT platforms and warned that if content creators fail to self-regulate, the government will introduce new laws to regulate OTT platforms.”
The committee will again meet stakeholders to discuss the issue further. However, it is not yet clear if the Parliamentary Committee is set to also meet OTT players and their representation bodies. An OTT player on condition of anonymity said, “The Parliamentary committee should have heard to OTT players and their representation bodies. We already operate under self-regulation, with strict parental control measures.”
Recently, Mumbai Police had filed a case against Balaji Telefilms Limited, Ekta Kapoor and her mother Shobha Kapoor at MHB police station in Mumbai under section 295-A of IPC, IT Act and sections 13 and 15 of POCSO Act. The case was filed for allegedly showing obscene scenes involving minor girls in an episode of one of their OTT show Gandi Baat on ALT Balaji.
In 2022, the Supreme Court had also slammed producer Ekta Kapoor for “objectionable content” in her web series ‘XXX’ and remarked that she was polluting the minds of the younger generation of India. The court made these sharp remarks while hearing her petition challenging the arrest warrant issued against the producer for allegedly insulting soldiers and hurting their families in a web series that aired on her OTT platform ALT Balaji.
Earlier in March, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting blocked 18 OTT platforms for publishing obscene, vulgar, and in some cases, pornographic content. The banned platforms included Neufliks, X Prime, Besharams, Mood X, and Prime Play. Additionally, the government disabled public access to 19 websites, 10 apps (7 on Google Play Store and 3 on Apple App Store), and 57 social media accounts linked to these platforms.
Storyboard18 had earlier reported that OTT platforms strongly opposed content censorship, arguing that new regulations in this rapidly growing sector could impede progress and discourage investment.
An OTT platform representative, speaking anonymously, stated, “Regulations designed for traditional media cannot be applied to OTT, which is a modern, online curated content medium. Investments in original local content have grown significantly, with over 50% of entertainment spending directed toward pay TV, excluding movies and sports.”
OTT platforms have argued that they already operate under self-regulation, with strict parental control measures and content designed to adhere to established standards. They claim additional regulations would complicate business operations and hinder the sector’s growth.