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Sanjay Gupta Slams Bollywood Stars' Smoking Posters, Sparks Debate on Anti-Smoking Ads
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News18•27-09-2026, 18:43
Sanjay Gupta Slams Bollywood Stars' Smoking Posters, Sparks Debate on Anti-Smoking Ads
- •Filmmaker Sanjay Gupta criticized recent film posters featuring Ranbir Kapoor, Ranveer Singh, and Vicky Kaushal smoking, questioning the effectiveness of anti-smoking reels shown in cinemas.
- •Gupta shared a collage of posters from Ranbir Kapoor's Animal, Ranveer Singh's Dhurandhar, and Vicky Kaushal's Love & War, all depicting the actors smoking.
- •His post on X (formerly Twitter) sparked a debate, with some users agreeing and others pointing to Gupta's own past work, like the 2002 film Kaante, which had a song referencing cigarettes.
- •The discussion expanded to the portrayal of smoking and masculinity in Indian films, with many users criticizing the lack of creativity in depicting male characters.
- •The controversy coincides with revised CBFC certification guidelines mandating warnings for films depicting substance use, and the reconstitution of the CBFC board with new members.
Key Questions Answered
Sanjay Gupta criticized promotional posters for films like Animal, Dhurandhar, and Love & War showing actors Ranbir Kapoor, Ranveer Singh, and Vicky Kaushal smoking, highlighting a contradiction with the mandatory anti-smoking reels shown in cinemas.
When a social media user pointed out the irony of Gupta's own 2002 film Kaante featuring cigarette references, Gupta defended himself by noting that mandatory anti-smoking public service ads did not exist when his movie was released.
Revised certification guidelines notified by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting include a mandatory warning for films depicting drug or substance use, stating that illicit narcotics destroy health and guarantee imprisonment.
