Matters relating to the three letter word that starts with an ‘S’ and ends with an ‘X’ are always a subject of debate in India.

Be it a raunchy advertisement on the telly, talking about the bird and the bee in Indian schools, program content of Fashion TV and AXN, or even a mere brush of Gere’s lips on Ms Shetty’s rosy cheeks; anything that has the slightest possibility of ‘stirring the loins’ of the Indian population ups the overly sensitive antenna of the cultural vigilantes of the country. Thus starting yet another finger pointing debate and a rush to move the court of law.

That the most recent issue of ‘moral policing’ involves a condom and the Madhya Pradesh government makes it so much more interesting!

For a brigade that recently banned the once-a-year, four day sex education program from its schools; availability of a ribbed condom that can vibrate, thus increasing the user’s sexual gratification, is an absolute moral and cultural blasphemy. Credenzo, the latest product offering by Hindustan Latex Limited, makers of other contraceptives such as Moods and Saheli, is ostensibly the first legal ‘sex toy’ made available in India. The package, for just Rs 125, comprises three condoms, a battery-operated rubber vibrating ring and a self-help user guide that says, “If the vibrating ring is used for self pleasure, it can be used directly without a condom.”