Dear Shweta Tiwari,
In the rat-race one sometimes ends up putting one’s foot in one’s mouth, and it get stuck there.The remark that you made in Bhopal about your lingerie(li-bral thoughts, you must have thought) and its (the lingerie) bizarre connection with God, confirmed the one suspicion that we all have about entertainers: that they should just entertain and not open their pretty mouths about national political or religious matters.
Religion is a special no-no when it comes to public giggles. Didn’t your parents tell you that?My dear friend Javed Akhtar has very interesting views on stars and their public utterances. “Anything they say can and will be held against them. So better not say anything. I have interacted with many actors who don’t even know who the President Of India is. Stick to what you know.Don’t get into areas that are completely darkened for you.”
This is why I like Shah Rukh Khan these days. After having burnt his fingers with his impetuous comments on men and matters, SRK has decided to say absolutely nothing, not even when his son is taken away to jail for no fault of his.
In your case we can’t even say you are being targeted for being a celebrity. Firstly, and I don’t mean to be impolite, you are no Shah Rukh Khan. I remember you in Ekta Kapoor’s long-running series Kasauti Zindagi Kay. Thereafter I can’t recall anything you have done…until now when suddenly a completely off-kilter remark connecting innerwear with God has the nation asking,who is that girl???
In that sense your marketing team has hit bull’s eye,Lady, you are in the news. Congratulations. But at what cost? Do you realize how foolhardy it is to make such a cheap statement at a time when the nation’s sensitivities are at their highest?Celebrities are known to get into serious trouble without knowing what they are doing. This time there was no oops about what you did: you knew exactly what you were saying, and why. You got your 7 minutes of fame. But it may cost you very dearly.
You need to change your PR strategy. There are easier ways to get attention these days. Rakhi Sawant, the master of marketing manipulation, says a lot of outrageous things. But she keeps God out of her rant. Rakhi had once confided in me, “I may be doing things to shock. But I make sure that I don’t say anything that will hurt any community’s sentiments. I have my family, my mother and brother, who would have to suffer the consequences.So I stay within my limits even when I am being outrageous.”
Here is what you need to teach your daughter who is stepping into showbiz: never speak out of turn; no need to have an opinion on anything besides the work that she does. No need to hide your face either when you are out on a date with a star-son. When you try to protest too hard about the attention, you are actually drawing more attention to yourself.
There are two kinds of attention: the one that gets you followers and the one that follows you down to your last breath.When one day in the very distant future your end comes, you don’t want to be remembered as the lady who said something weird about Bhagwan…Or do you?
Sincerely
Subhash K Jha