India, Dec. 6 -- Recently, I bought a beautifully produced book titled 'Mother Mary Comes to Me' by Arundhati Roy. The cover is undeniably striking: A lush red fabric with a sleeve featuring a black-and-white photograph of Roy holding a hand-rolled cigarette. It is bold and artistic.

I had barely placed the book on my table when our Advertising Manager walked in. One glance at the cover and she made a prophecy that felt oddly specific: "The publisher is going to face frivolous cases."

Seeing my surprise, she added matter-of-factly, "It's the smoking. Someone will file a case. Either for publicity or to extract money."

I laughed it off. A month later, her words came true.

An advocate named Rajasimhan appeared before a Supreme Court Ben...