Professional Report - Smoke Free Movies

50% of Wilson, GLC, Jaihind and Sydenham students smoke while St. Xavier’s college, smokers
constitute nearly 55% of students. 12
• Smoking among girls has risen sharply. 30% of smokers in Jaihind and GLC colleges are girls, up from
10% two years ago. 13
• A survey of school students in Kolkata by the Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute (CNCI) showed that
nearly 18% of male students and 4% of female students in the 14-16 years age group were regular or
occasional smokers. And nearly 40% of students in Class IX and XI in Kolkata said that they intend to take
up smoking. The CNCI report further revealed that a student in the city is 4.5 times more likely to start
smoking if a sibling smokes, 2.4 times if he already chews pan masala and 1.23 times more likely if a
parent is a smoker. The study found that 17.4% students in government schools smoke while 12.5 %
students of private schools do so. 14 The Department of Preventive Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital,
interviewed 100 school girls to find out about their tobacco consumption habits and found that a majority of
the girls smoked cigarettes, chewed gutka or consumed other forms of tobacco. “Smoking among girls is
often a rebel activity and they smoke to show that they are equal with boys in every respect,” the study
reported. Rebellion was cited as the reason for smoking by 25% of the girls while 23% had started
smoking due to peer pressure. The other reasons for consuming tobacco products included: to combat
stress, to boost self-esteem, and to loose weight. 15
2.2 Barriers to Tobacco Advertising
Increasingly, tobacco companies are finding it difficult to advertise their brands in the mass media. Seven
states in the country have introduced a ban on cigarette advertising. This in turn has led to a decline in sales of
cigarettes. The leading tobacco companies have witnessed a decline in production of cigarettes, from 92 billion
in 1997-98 down to 90 billion sticks in 2000-01 adding up to sales revenues of US $1.95 -billion (see figure 1:
Company wise trends in production). 16 Tobacco companies are estimated to spend up to 5% of their sales
revenues on advertising and promotions, which works out to US $ 100 m (approximately Rs 5 billion).
India’s cigarette market is dominated by local brands though international brands such as Benson & Hedges
and State Express 555 are now being produced and distributed in the country. The leading manufacturer of
cigarettes in India is ITC (Indian Tobacco Company) which is partially owned by BAT (British American
Tobacco). Despite the declining sales of cigarettes, ITC has managed to hold on to its market share and
currently has nearly 78% of the cigarette market (see Figure: Trends in Market Shares 1995-6 to 2000-01.) The
other major players are Vazir Sultan Tobacco Ltd (VST), in which BAT holds a minority stake, Godfrey Phillips
India, a joint venture of Philip Morris with the Modi Group, and GTC Industries.
According to an Economic Times-AC Nielsen Retail Audit study conducted for the period September 2001-
August 2002, the top two brands in the Indian market are Gold Flake and Wills Navy Cut.
“The cigarette brand from ITC, Gold Flake, far from being a puff in the wind, is the largest in our survey – at US $777 million.
Against the background of social and government disapproval, inability to advertise on television as well as taxation, this brand
rules the roost. In fact, it’s twice as big as the number two brand, Wills Navy Cut (including Classic), another ITC brand at $360
million. These two cigarette brands account for $1.1 billion – that’s more than 50% of ITC’s turnover for 2001 and nearly 50% of
Hindustan Lever’s(HLL) in the same year. Their size is even more noteworthy given the ban on advertising for tobacco products.
Put these numbers in the global perspective: BAT, which holds a stake in ITC, is the world’s second largest cigarette company,
accounting for 15.4% of the world’s trade in cigarettes, with 300 brands in 180 countries.” 17
While the advertising option may -not be available to tobacco brands in the not too distant future, that does not
imply an elimination of its presence from the mass media. Far from it. Over the past few decades Big Tobacco
has been making inroads into popular cinema worldwide. In India, Godfrey Phillips’ brand, Red & White, which
12
Times of India, Downtown supplement, Mumbai, 6 December 2002
13
Times of India, Downtown supplement, Mumbai, 6 December 2002
14
The Telegraph, 29 April 2002.
15
The Indian Express, 9 September 2000
16 CMIE, Industry Market Size & Shares, August 2002.
17 “Smoke on the Water, Fizz in the Sky,” Brand Equity, Economic Times, 18 December 2002
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