May 01, 2025 03:05 PM IST
Sinners was shown in Indian theatres with heath disclaimers in an oversized font, which read: ‘Smoking and alcohol consumption are injurious to health.’
Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap has reacted strongly on the mandatory health disclaimers that were displayed in an oversized font during the screening of Sinners in Indian theatres. Speaking to Indiewire regarding the issue, Anurag shared that this practice is inadvertently ‘killing the mood’ of the audience who is invested in a scene that is so painstakingly created by the filmmaker. (Also read: Hansal Mehta slams mandatory smoking disclaimer on OTT platforms: Only reason tobacco products kill is our films, shows)
What Anurag said
Anurag commented on the disclaimer and said, “In a mood piece such a Sinners, these disclaimers such as smoking and drinking yank the audience out of the immersive experience that the filmmaker had painstakingly created, killing the mood and the build-up in the process.”
‘…A fundamental threat to artistic expression’
Anurag recounted his own experience of suing the Censor Board for keeping such disclaimers on his 2013 film Ugly, and added, “I argued that it was a fundamental threat to artistic expression. The case dragged on, and eventually, we had to abandon the fight and release it after our film got pirated. A filmmaker uses visuals, music and nuance to create something for the audience to immerse in. And before they could even enter that world, a jarring ad ruins the experience.”
The filmmaker added that even though there is some kind of resistance for this issue, nothing changes as the policymakers do not seem to care about aesthetics.
Sinners is an action-horror film directed by Ryan Coogler and starring Michael B. Jordan, which released in Indian theatres on April 18. The film received glowing reviews from fans and critics alike, and is doing great at the box office globally. It has collected $175 million worldwide so far, becoming the sixth highest-grossing film of 2025.
The film follows twins Smoke and Stack as they return to their Mississippi hometown seeking a fresh start—only to confront an ancient evil in the form of vampires. The film also stars Jack O’Connell, Delroy Lindo, Hailee Steinfeld, Miles Caton, and Saul Williams.
