Plea in HC seeks accessibility features for 'Stree 2', 'Auro Mein Kahan Dum Tha' on OTT platform

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has sought the stand of the makers of Stree 2 and Auro Mein Kahan Dum Tha as well as OTT platform Amazon on a plea by two visually impaired persons seeking inclusion of features to make the films accessible to them.

Justice Sanjeev Narula issued a notice to the producers, the OTT platform as well as the Centre on the petition by Akshat Baldwa and Rahul Bajaj, and said he was "hopeful" that the parties would find out an appropriate solution before the next date of hearing.

The petitioners said they had written to the producers for accessibility features when the films were released on the OTT platform and received responses that they were in touch with Amazon for the same.

"Accordingly, Respondent No. 4 OTT platform is directed to coordinate with the producer in the said regard. The court is hopeful that the said parties would find out an appropriate solution before the next date of hearing," said the court in the order passed on December 5.

Bajaj, a practising lawyer, argued that the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act puts an obligation on the government to ensure that all content available in electronic media is in accessible format.

He said the principle of reasonable accommodation requires that necessary and appropriate modifications are done to ensure that persons with disabilities enjoy their rights equally.

In the petition, the petitioners stated that the two films were inaccessible due to the lack of certain critical features like audio descriptions for visually impaired individuals and the same language captions for those with hearing impairments.

These features, the plea said, were essential for ensuring equal access to the cultural, social, and educational benefits offered by entertainment content.

It further said the Centre has notified the 'Guidelines for Accessibility Standards in the Public Exhibition of Feature Films in Cinema Theatres for Persons with Hearing and Visual Impairment' but these contain no provision for the accessibility of content on OTT platforms.

The matter would be heard next on December 19.