The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has formed an informal group to examine content on OTT streaming platforms and suggest measures to address what it describes as “cultural pollution”.
According to The Indian Express, the group was formed a few months ago and includes former vice chancellors and RSS pracharaks working in education and culture. It held its first meeting last month.
An RSS source said the group plans to prepare recommendations that will eventually be submitted to the Union Ministry of Culture and other government stakeholders.
“We need something like a censor board to deal with this cultural pollution affecting our families and the young generation in particular,” the source told The Indian Express.
RSS Panel Plans Legal Consultations
The group does not have a fixed deadline for submitting its recommendations. According to another RSS source, its members also plan to consult legal experts and people working in the field before finalising the proposal.
The initiative reportedly follows feedback from the RSS’s Kutumb Prabodhan activity, which focuses on family values, relationships between generations and social harmony.
RSS sources have described OTT platforms as one of the sources of what the organisation considers moral corruption.
Mohan Bhagwat Had Called for OTT Regulation
The move comes nearly two years after RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat criticised OTT content during the organisation’s Vijayadashami address in Nagpur on October 12, 2024.
“The kind of things shown on OTT platforms are so disgusting that talking about it too would be indecent,” Bhagwat had said.
He also argued that OTT content should be regulated through law and described it as one of the reasons for what he called “moral corruption” in society.
No CBFC Equivalent for OTT Platforms
Films released in theatres are certified by the Central Board of Film Certification under the Cinematograph Act, 1952.
OTT platforms, however, do not currently have an equivalent pre certification body. Their content is primarily governed by the Information Technology Rules, 2021, which provide for self classification, age ratings and a three tier grievance redressal system, along with other applicable laws.
The question of stronger regulation has been debated by the government and parliamentary committees in recent years.
In July 2026, the government told Parliament that 50 OTT platforms had been blocked over two years over allegedly obscene content.
In August, the Ministry of Home Affairs told a parliamentary committee that a comprehensive framework for regulating OTT programmes considered offensive to societal moral standards was under consideration.
Debate Over CBFC Style OTT Regulation
There has also been discussion about introducing a CBFC style certification system for films released directly on OTT platforms.
Some lawmakers and industry representatives have raised concerns about such a system, including possible delays and its impact on creative freedom.
Congress MPs Ajay Maken and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra have opposed mandatory pre certification. Maken argued that stronger age verification and parental controls would be more appropriate, while Priyanka Gandhi warned that sending large volumes of OTT content through a certification system could create a major backlog.
The RSS panel is expected to consider these regulatory questions, along with legal and cultural concerns, before submitting its recommendations to the government.
