Condom ad obscene: UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Sharmila Tagore

November 5, 2006

2006/11/4, NEW DELHI, Reuters

Indian authorities want to stop the daytime airing of a television

advertisement promoting flavored condoms saying it is obscene and in

bad taste, a newspaper reported Friday.

The advert promotes DKT's " XXX " strawberry, chocolate and banana

flavored condoms with the catchline " What is your flavor of the

night? " .

But the Advertising Standards Council of India and the Censor Board

have asked the government to bar the advert from being broadcast

during the day, especially during the popular Champions Trophy

international cricket tournament.

" This campaign is obscene, " Sharmila Tagore, chairwoman of the

Censor Board was quoted as saying in the Times of India. " Maybe DKT

is targeting raunchy teenagers. But the ads are definitely not meant

for children. "

Tagore, who is also an anti-AIDS activist, said she did not want to

ban the advert totally, but recommended it be aired after 11:00 p.m.

or in cinemas with an " A certification " instead of during the day

when children were watching television.

An A certification on a film or advert indicates that it is meant

for adult viewing only.

A senior DKT official told the newspaper the flavored condoms were

not meant to promote oral sex, but to encourage couples who do not

like the smell of latex.

Conservative attitudes to sex and contraception and a lack of

awareness is common, especially in rural India.

Experts say this has not only left children and women vulnerable to

abuse but has also exacerbated the spread of HIV/AIDS in the

country, which now has the highest number of cases in the world.

Recommended Posts