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THE PIC: The NGOs say the 'glamourisation' of the habit will influence many fans of Vijender Kumar (above) to start consuming tobacco. Photo Courtesy Maxim India |
"What is the need for such a picture? Vijender did us all proud at the Olympics, but glamorising smoking this way can only prove harmful to all those who admire him and his achievement," said Bhavana Mukhopadhyay of the Voluntary Health Association of India, which represents 4,000 other smaller organisations that are pushing for anti-tobacco laws.
"It's quite possible that he didn't understand the implications of what he was doing at the time, but it is now his responsibility to dissociate himself from this immediately," she added.
According to studies carried out by anti-tobacco campaigners, celebrity portrayals have a major impact on children's attitude.
"There's no doubt about this. Some schoolchildren don't even think that smoking is a harmful habit because they see their icons doing the same," said Devika Chadha, project director for Salaam Bombay.
However, some think that the issue is being overplayed. Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, who spoke for both Kumar and Bollywood, which has been targeted on this subject time and again, said the moral police were turning icons into 'beasts of burden'.
"Vijender has just returned after his achievement and we're already descending upon him in this mean manner. Why is it that when you become a national icon, you lose your right to live the way you want to?" questioned Bhatt.
Coach didn't know
G S Sandhu, Kumar's boxing coach, denied knowledge of the photo.
"He must not have realised the implications of such a photo. Nonetheless, he should have known better. I am sure he won't do it again," he said.
Before Vijender...Shah Rukh Khan and Amitabh Bachchan have also been criticised for smoking on and off screen
