Current Affairs

25 OTT Platforms Banned: ‘House Arrest’, Ullu Reality Show with Ajaz Khan, Cited as Example by Officials

The Indian government blocked 25 OTT websites on July 25, 2025, which were considered to contain obscene, vulgar, and pornographic content; these included Ullu, ALTT, and Desiflix. The house arrest, a reality show with Ajaz Khan as a host on Ullu, was used as a reference point by the authorities, igniting the topic of regulation of OTT content in India. Likewise, the paper will discuss the ban, what it means, and how publishers of websites can produce AdSense-compliant material in this ever-changing environment. Embedded with personal experiences and local knowledge, as well as statistics from reliable sources such as the Hindustan Times, India Today, and Statista, the guide can be helpful to the Indian digital content producers.

1. Background of the OTT Ban

Under the Information Technology Act, 2000, IT Rules 2021, and in consultation with the Ministry of Home Affairs and experts, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) blocked 26 websites and 14 applications, including Ullu and ALTT. The ruling was to block the content with so-called sexual innuendos and explicit scenes without storylines or societal value to the law, such as Section 67 of the IT Act and the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986. The second film affected was House Arrest because it contained controversial scenes, and that is why action was taken quickly.
The digital market in India, which is expected to be $70 billion by 2024 (IBEF), needs responsible content production. This restriction highlights the tendency of the government to control OTT platforms, at least, since 18 of them have been blocked in March of 2024, except Ullu and ALTT.
Insight: As a website owner, it is important to ensure that content is lawful and user-focused in order to evade regulatory eyeballs and remain eligible for AdSense.

2. Why House Arrest Sparked Controversy

House Arrest, a reality show that uses captivity as a theme on Ullu, was received with a lot of criticism due to its explicit nature. One of the videos that went viral depicted Khan coercing the female contestants to perform sex positions in front of the camera, the other segment being that the women were asked to strip off undergarments in a public manner. These scenes, which are detailed as being degrading and vulgar, made people outraged, making them make demands to close social media.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi condemned the content of Ullu, stating that it did not feature in the list of banned platforms in 2024, and that the National Commission for Women (NCW) is summoning Khan and Ullu CEO Vibhu Agarwal on May 9, 2025. India is very strict on obscene material, and Khan and producer Rajkumar Pandey have been booked, through an FIR, under several laws.
Insight: Indian consumers are sensitive to culturally sensitive content, and as such, it is important that content producers adapt to local standards.

3. Regulatory Actions and Legal Implications

The ban by MIB is part of the bigger pressure in the crackdown on the OTT platforms, where another popular show, House Arrest, is under fire for breaking Section 67A of the IT Act, which outlaws sexually explicit materials. The Digital Publisher Content Grievances Council (DPCGC) has in the past issued warnings on more than 100 Ullu web series, but the temporary editing of such content by the site helped it escape any previous bans.
Khan was summoned with Agarwal by Mumbai Police; a caucus case of rape just meant more attention to Khan. The April 2025 verdict of the Supreme Court placed stress on the so-called social responsibility of OTT platforms, requesting their more rigorous regulation.
Insight: Content audits and legality are what the owners of these websites must engage with regularly to ensure that their web pages do not end up being penalized and consequentially end up not being advertised by AdSense.

4. Impact on India’s OTT Landscape

The OTT market in India is estimated at 1.5 billion as well as expected to hit 7 billion by 2030, which is subject to the ban (Statista, 2024). Services such as Ullu with its daring stories will have to swim through the tightened rules now. The fact that such giant platforms as Netflix did not face the ban indicates an emphasis on smaller applications that do not have a strong system of self-regulation.
This has been an indication of the change towards the family-friendly and culturally relevant content by Indian creators. As online traffic jumps to 900 million users in India (TRAI, 2024), sites have to combine novelty with caution to avoid losing it and the ability to use AdSense.
Insights: Pay attention to real narration to distinguish your content in a regulated market.

5. Lessons for AdSense-Compliant Content Creation

To finalize the AdSense-friendly content, you should not use explicit material and pay attention to the provided value to users. Google has forbidden the content of a sexual nature or that may be shocking, depending on the policies. This is consistent with the IT Rules of India. Such tools as Yoast SEO could be used to make the content correspond to E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) which is critical to AEO and AdSense.
In the example of the blog that will respond to the question, what are the best family-friendly OTTs in India? Disney+ Hotstar can be mentioned, as it has a wide range of compliance content. Trust depends upon regular updates and HTTPS.
Action: Audit one page and then add a family-friendly FAQ section with clear content.

6. Leveraging AI for Compliant Content

AI content-generating tools such as Jasper or Grammarly can be used to generate AEO-friendly / AdSense-accepted content. An example would be the target queries, such as “How to select safe OTT content in India?”, to which the answer may be: “You can choose such options as Amazon Prime, which is approved to be watched by children.” AI provides brief, culturally considerate answers, particularly increasing the SEO of AI content.
The AnswerThePublic tool is an answer engine optimization tool capable of recognizing compliant queries in India, where voice search usage is already 41 percent among adults (Statista, 2023). Optimize AI returns by localizing them to ensure they comply with local values and they do not violate AdSense rules.
Action: Apply Jasper to write an Indian-refined FAQ page with compliant content.

7. Future of OTT Content in India

The ban emphasizes the importance of self-regulation in the OTT sphere in India. A clear content framework should be adopted in the platforms like it has been with Netflix voluntary ratings. Answer engine optimization tools can also help the owner of the website to observe the trends and come up with compliance blogs such that AI content performs successfully as far as SEO goes.
As the country of India expands to a digital audience, it concentrates on academic or culturally appealing materials, such as the blog on the history of Indian cinema, to meet the quality of AdSense and the expectations of the audience.
Action: Develop a single blog about compliant OTT trends based on AnswerThePublic searches.

Full List of Banned OTT Platforms

The 25 banned OTT platforms, as reported by Hindustan Times and Indian Express, are:
  • 1. ALTT (ALTBalaji)
  • 2. Ullu
  • 3. Desiflix
  • 4. Big Shots App
  • 5. Boomex
  • 6. Navarasa Lite
  • 7. Gulab App
  • 8. Kangan App
  • 9. Bull App
  • 10. Jalva App
  • 11. Wow Entertainment
  • 12. Look Entertainment
  • 13. Hitprime
  • 14. Feneo
  • 15. ShowX
  • 16. Sol Talkies
  • 17. Adda TV
  • 18. HotX VIP
  • 19. Hulchul App
  • 20. MoodX
  • 21. NeonX VIP
  • 22. Fugi
  • 23. Mojflix
  • 24. Triflicks
  • 25. Uncut Adda
These platforms were flagged for explicit content, with Ullu’s House Arrest cited for its “vulgar” challenges, prompting action after earlier warnings were ignored.

Navigating India’s Digital Future

The prohibition of the 25 OTT platforms, House Arrest being a case in point, tells us how India is determined to control the prohibited content. With AdSense-optimized AI content creation and answer engine optimization tools, an internet website owner will be able to develop content that specifically attracts the attention of the 900 million Indians already surfing the net. Let it begin with an audit of a single page and incorporation of local and family-friendly insights to succeed in the digital environment of 2025.

Disclaimer

The information presented in this blog is derived from publicly available sources for general use, including any cited references. While we strive to mention credible sources whenever possible, Web Techneeq – Seo Company in Andheri does not guarantee the accuracy of the information provided in any way. This article is intended solely for general informational purposes. It should be understood that it does not constitute legal advice and does not aim to serve as such. If any individual(s) make decisions based on the information in this article without verifying the facts, we explicitly reject any liability that may arise as a result. We recommend that readers seek separate guidance regarding any specific information provided here.