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Netflix, Amazon face censorship threat in India

Agencies
October 18, 2019

New Delhi/Mumbai, Oct 18: India is deliberating potential censorship on streaming platforms such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, a senior government source told Reuters.

While film and TV certification bodies already moderate public content in India, the country's laws do not allow censorship of content on the increasingly popular online streaming platforms.

The government's concern has been sparked by several court cases and complaints filed to the police in recent months, alleging that some content was obscene or insulted religious sentiment, said the government official, who has direct knowledge of the deliberations.

Though concerns around possible censorship had prompted Netflix and Indian rival Hotstar to signs a self-regulation code in January, Amazon did not sign up and said "the current laws are adequate".

"The self-regulation isn't the same for all, which is raising a concern ... the directions are clear, we have to see how to address the problems," the government official said.

Netflix's first Indian original series, "Sacred Games", faced a court challenge last year over "offensive scenes" and derogatory remarks about a former Indian prime minister, but the case was later dismissed.

There was also a police complaint filed last month by an Indian politician who accused some Netflix shows of "defaming Hindus". It is unclear whether this will go further and a Mumbai police spokesman had no immediate comment on Thursday.

All of which has heightened concerns within government and prompted talks between India's Information and Broadcasting and IT ministries in an effort to come up with an acceptable regulatory framework for such content providers.

Though it is possible the government will decide against any regulation, several other options are being explored, the government source said.

These include a self-regulation code without government interference, a government-monitored code or measures requiring platforms to obtain content approval in advance.

Neither ministry responded immediately to requests for comment.

The government official said there was also concern about disparity in how some content appeared on different mediums. Smoking scenes in Bollywood movies on Amazon and Netflix in India, for example, do not carry the mandatory anti-tobacco textual warnings.

"With regulation, all of the (global) content will need to be sanitised for India - a huge, expensive and time-consuming exercise," said Prasanto Roy, a New Delhi technology policy analyst who advises global tech companies.

Netflix and Amazon are also producing more and more original local content to win viewers in India, where increased use of mobile data and smartphones is supporting deamnd for their services.

Netflix, which last year said India could deliver its next 100 million subscribers, recently rolled out a monthly mobile-only plan in India for 199 rupees ($2.80), less than half the price of its cheapest standard plan at 499 rupees.

The company said on Thursday that it was "very happy" with the way its mobile plan was performing in India and it may expand it into other markets.

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News Network
June 2,2020

New Delhi, Jun 2: Actor Anushka Sharma on Tuesday exhorted people to maintain hygiene and advised to stop open defecation in a bid to avoid coronavirus spread.

As the country is grappling with the coronavirus crisis, the 'PK' actor has joined the initiative with the Swachh Bharat Mission, which aims to tell the people that the contagion can be curbed through strict sanitation process.

"When women all over the country had decided that they would educate everyone on the lesson of close the door, shun the disease, no one had thought that their initiative would turn into such a huge wave!," the actor was seen saying in a video posted in the official Twitter handle of Swachh Bharat I #IndiaFightsCorona.

"Today, in the time of coronavirus pandemic, we all have to again remember and remind others about the lesson of cleanliness," she added.

"If we take care of cleanliness around us, by not defecating in the open, we will keep ourselves healthy and India clean. We will become strong to fight against any kind of disease," the 32-year-old star said.

The 'Sultan' actor noted that by stopping defecating in open and closing the toilet door at all times can be a solid measure to drive the disease out of the country.

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News Network
May 20,2020

Mumbai, May 20: Doing his bit to help people in need during the ongoing coronavirus crisis, and the lockdown 4.0 phase, Bollywood actor Salman Khan has initiated ''Being Haangryy''- food truck facility to distribute, provide ration to needy.

To feed the affected people in Mumbai, the food truck with the words ''Being Haangryy'' written on it, was seen in Mumbai roads on Wednesday, where volunteers are providing huge bags of ration. A long queue of people was standing near the truck to get the essentials.

Many videos of the truck moving around the city providing ration kits to the people in need, surfaced on the internet from earlier this month.

However, the Bajrangi Bhaijaan actor has not announced this initiative himself on his personal social media accounts.

The Sultan actor is staying at his Panvel farmhouse with his nephew Nirvaan Khan and other family members ever since the lockdown was announced.

Earlier, the 54-year-old actor urged people to take up the ''Anna Daan'' challenge and donate to the underprivileged ones who are worst affected by the COVID-19 lockdown.

After urging people to take up the ''Anna Daan'' challenge, the actor posted a video on Twitter, that features him and Iulia Vantur, Jacqueline Fernandez among others loading the bags filled with ration on to a truck.

Khan actively posts videos on his social media handles to raise awareness about the importance of social distancing during COVID-19.

 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

@jacquelinef143 @vanturiulia @rahulnarainkanal @imkamaalkhan @niketan_m @waluschaa @abhiraj88

A post shared by Salman Khan (@beingsalmankhan) on

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News Network
March 5,2020

Bihar, Mar 5: A complaint has been filed before a court in Bihar against lyricist Javed Akhtar over his remarks on the FIRs being registered against expelled AAP councillor Tahir Hussain in the wake of Delhi riots.

The complaint was lodged on Wednesday by Amit Kumar, a local advocate, before the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate Thakur Aman Kumar.

On the basis of a newspaper report, the complainant has alleged that Akhtar's remarks were seditious and promoted religious hatred.

The media report was based on Akhtar's tweet of February 27 that "So many killed, so many injured, so many houses burned, so many shops looted so many people turned destitute but police has sealed only one house and looking for his owner. Incidentally, his name is Tahir. Hats off to the consistency of the Delhi police."

The violence in northeast Delhi claimed at least 42 lives and left over 200 injured. The former Rajya Sabha member was heavily trolled for the tweet.

In a subsequent tweet, Akhtar who asserted that he is a non-believer and a rationalist, had clarified that he was not asking "why Tahir but why ONLY Tahir and not even an FIR against those who have openly threatened violence in the presence of the police".

The matter is likely to come up for hearing on March 25.

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