Sex, excess violence and now, smoking. If the villain or hero lights a fag in a film, filmmakers just might end up with 'A' certificates for their films.

It seems the I&B Ministry has agreed to the Health Ministry's suggestion that films with smoking in them be certified 'for adults only'- only viewers above 18 can watch it in cinemas.

Therefore, if stars don't want to lose money and young fans, they will have to forego smoking on screen. Bare in mind, the clause is not restricted to Indian films. If the proposal becomes law, Spider-Man 3 will also be on the 'A' cert list and therefore off-limits for children. The decision was based on a 2003 World Health Organisation (WHO) study -'Bollywood: Victim or Ally' -which spoke about the influence of smoking in the films on younger audience.

Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, who has filed a petition in the Delhi HC against the smoking ban, refused to comment on the move, saying the matter was sub justice. "We believe that the censor board has enough powers to prune scenes glamorising smoking," he said.

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