Former addicts say smoking not cool' or helpful

HYDERABAD: City residents, ahead of World No Tobacco Day observed on May 31, said they took up smoking due to an array of factors, ranging from peer pressure and fashionable lifestyle to using it as a coping mechanism and identity building.

People Deccan Chronicle spoke to said that they decided to give up the habit. Many also took inspiration from celebrities who gave up smoking. Among the celebrities listed were film stars Hrithik Roshan, Konkana Sen Sharma, Shahid Kapoor, Rajnikanth, Mahesh Babu, Kamal Hassan, Vijay Deverakonda and Arjun Rampal, among others.

One such former addict who detailed their tobacco journey was Anushka S., who started smoking casually with her friends and eventually made it a regular habit, before quitting it after four years of addiction.

“I wanted to stop smoking completely due to the health hazards and I could finally stop it three months ago. I stopped hanging around people who smoke and going to smoking zones to keep them company. I feel good now and would never want to go back to it,” she said.

Shakeb Z., an IT professional, was a heavy smoker for six years until he quit around four years ago. “I started smoking because of peer pressure in college and to fit in. Without even realising it, one puff turned into a one packet a day. But it was my sheer will and change in my perception about life that helped me come out of the addiction,” he said.

K. Siddharth shared his journey from being a chain smoker to ridding himself of addiction. “I was a smoker for seven years. I used to smoke 3-5 cigarettes a day, which, over time, became 20-25 cigarettes per day. My near and dear ones advised me to quit smoking for the sake of my health. After two months of struggle, I was able to come out of it slowly and it’s been four years since I have smoked a cigarette,” he said.

Zuhab Shaikh, who started smoking when he was a teenager, said that he took up the habit to “look cool” but later realised that it was not helpful. “It's been six years that I have been smoking on and off. I am sure that I will be able to quit completely whenever I decide. So the process is still ongoing”.

Movies and Books on Smoking

Smoking is an activity that has caught the human imagination from time immemorial, growing from a recreational activity to one of the strongest lobbies in the world. The significance of smoking on various aspects of human lives has been explored in various languages and formats, including movies and books. DC has compiled a list of such creations:

Popular movies:

No Smoking (Bollywood)

Love In A Puff (International, Hong Kong)

Up In Smoke (Hollywood)

Thank You For Smoking (Hollywood)

Documentaries:

A Billion Lives (starring former WHO experts Dr Derek Yach, Dr Delon Human)

The Drag (Italian, directed by Carlos Marchiori)

Literary works:

The Cigarette Century — The Rise, Fall, and Deadly Persistence of the Product that Defined America (by Allan M. Brandt)

The Cigarette: A Political History (by Sarah Milov)

Thank You for Smoking (by Christopher Buckley)