With the news of the medical drama television series Sanjivani 2 coming on Star Plus, actor Pankit Thakker’s fans were elated and had wished him great luck on social media. But soon, they were taken aback as this reboot of the show featured different actors.
It can be noted that after the success of the earlier Sanjivni episodes on Star Plus, its sequel Dill Mill Gayye on Star One emerged a blockbuster and ran for a whopping 721 episodes.
Pankit, whose character of Dr Atul was hugely popular in Dill Mill Gayye, had fans expecting him to reprise the role, and see more of his love story with the character of Dr Anjali. His character is remembered for being the affable guy and the loving son of Dr Omi Joshi.
However, they were disappointed to find that his character of Dr Atul was missing. Pankit is also famous for being a professional and bankable actor, with a successful innings on Indian television.
The new series which began this August, is waiting to recreate that old Sanjivani and Dill Mill Gayye magic. Whether it will be able to or not, remains to be seen. But bringing back a popular actor from a cult show is always a tried-and-tested idea worth attempting to bring in the TRPs.
Versatile actress Feryna Wazheir who has earlier essayed desi period characters in films such as Rang Rasiya, Meri Preeto and Airlift, will soon be seen playing a modern British Muslim in Commando 3 along with Vidyut Jammwal, Adah Sharma, Angira Dhar and Gulshan Devaiah.
Set in London and India, shot by Mark Hamilton and Priya Seth, the film will showcase Feryna as a woman caught in a dilemma.
“It’s a performance-oriented character. Although I love playing very desi roles, it’s nice to be able to play a contemporary character closer to my roots,” says Feryna, who was required to speak Urdu for the role. Luckily for her, that’s her mother tongue.
Hailing from Kashmir, Feryna is one of the most beautiful women in Bollywood. Born and raised in Scotland, she has been into films from childhood. She studied acting at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA) and now splits her time between Mumbai and London.
Her love of theatre and Indian movies was evident at a young age and led her to roles in amateur theatre, before beginning her journey in Bollywood. At university, Feryna studied film communication and cultural studies which broadened her outlook.
She is also proficient in the ancient Indian martial art Kalaripayattu as well as boxing. Its yet to be seen if those talents come to use in the film! Commando 3 releases worldwide on November 29.
Twitter plays an important role in forming and maneuvering public opinion, which is essential for PR. There are fan clubs formed for most top contestants and the best part is that they tag themselves and fight with each other like cats and dogs.
This activity happens not only throughout the season, but a lot of Twitterati even defends their favourite contestants for years after they have won or lost on Bigg Boss.
“From a PR point of view, the interesting part is that people’s emotions can be swayed very easily through Twitter,” says Bollywood’s only PR guru Dale Bhagwagar, in an interview to commerce site Business Upturn.
The PR specialist is considered to be an authority on Bigg Boss by the media, simply because he has handled PR for not one, two, or ten — but for a full 20 contestants who have been on the show since its inception.
Bigg Boss 13
Dale adds that there are many “dubious nameless handles on Twitter, relentlessly working day and night to fulfill ‘agendas’… or should I say hidden agendas.” For this reason, he feels that Twitter does not do justice to the reality show. “With such people on Twitter, it’s hard to think of any journalistic or PR ethics. There is no control on Twitter, just people playing with emotions and mostly wasting their energies and time.”
But Dale makes an honest and shocking confession in the end. “For a manipulative PR like me, Twitter feels like my circus, with me as its ringmaster.” Now that’s some admission!
Bollywood’s only PR guru Dale Bhagwagar is an authority on Bigg Boss, simply because he has handled PR for not one, two, or ten — but for a full 20 contestants who have been on the show since its inception. We ask the Bigg Boss PR specialist some tough questions.
Indian audience, specially the youth, is changing fast. People are largely watching shows and movies on OTT (Over The Top) platforms? Do you think this is the reason behind low TRPs (Total Rating Points) for Bigg Boss?
My feeling is that Bigg Boss TRPs fluctuate for many reasons. The first among them is the show’s deviation from the core format. Please understand, Bigg Boss began as a hardcore reality show. Then over a period of time, probably to heighten the drama quotient, many tasks and entertainment props were introduced. That makes it look like any other game show now. The ‘reality’ element has gone down, and the viewer understands that.
The other aspect is that Bigg Boss is not available on the most popular web platform YouTube. Then, some journalists say they do not receive the regular updates like daily synopsis and pictures. So they have to resort to lifting content. This may be hampering the hype.
All these and many more, could be the reasons ultimately responsible for the TRP fluctuations. But TRP is a game of numbers and Bigg Boss can play it better. Remember Bob Dylan’s song “The Times Are A Changin”? The world is changing fast and I feel BB needs to keep pace. I may be wrong, but this is what I have come to understand over a period of time.
Most of the top contenders and past Bigg Boss winners are out of the entertainment industry by now. No one talks about them. Why do they fade away?
That’s a good question and many have tried to answer it before, but missed the mark. I believe that the biggest reason is that most of the Bigg Boss participants do not understand PR.
So they either go into the show without hiring a publicist, or think they can rely on their Twitter fans to do the job. Both methods are PR disasters. One needs a professional to spin and maneuver through the ups and downs that Bigg Boss Housemates face almost on a daily basis inside the show.
A solid crisis management exercise in mainstream media, coupled with hype, can help contestants sail through with ease. My Bigg Boss PR clients including Aarya Babbar, Aman Verma, Amar Upadhyay, Kashmera Shah, Mandana Karimi, Pooja Misrra, Rahul Mahajan, Rakhi Sawant, Sambhavna Seth and Sonali Raut have all benefitted with a strong PR presence. But then, many BB contestants completely fail to understand the need for PR. Some even become arrogant by the time they come out of the show.
They think that by being on national television for three months and sharing screen space with megastar host Salman Khan has made them a star. So they start behaving like one. Then they don’t get work and the media hype starts dying after the show ends. In a few months they are back to square one and start fading into oblivion.
That is the time they think of being proactive and about hiring a good PR to publicize themselves. But by then, it’s too late. No media is interested to speak about them. Many BB contestants face depression in this phase. Some come out of it. Others destroy their careers due to it. It’s sad. But it’s the ugly truth.
Do you think the Twitterati does justice to Bigg Boss?
No, but Twitter plays an important role in forming and maneuvering public opinion, which is essential for PR. There are fan clubs formed for most top contestants and the best part is that they tag themselves and fight with each other like cats and dogs.
This activity happens not only throughout the season, but a lot of Twitterati even defends their favourite contestants for years after they have won or lost on Bigg Boss. From a PR point of view, the interesting part is that people’s emotions can be swayed very easily through Twitter.
There are many dubious nameless handles on Twitter, relentlessly working day and night to fulfill ‘agendas’… or should I say hidden agendas.
With such people on Twitter, it’s hard to think of any journalistic or PR ethics. There is no control on Twitter, just people playing with emotions and mostly wasting their energies and time. But for a manipulative PR like me, Twitter feels like my circus, with me as its ringmaster.
Must say, that’s a very interesting observation. And it’s surprising that you so coolly admit the fact that you are a media manipulator. Can you name 12 contestants from previous seasons who can be put together once again in a season to set the TRP charts on fire?
Ha ha! As far as I know, Bigg Boss does not repeat contestants and even if they do, those are either special guests or don’t really make it to the end of the show. However, since you’ve asked me the question, I will name my choice of 12. Here we go: Aksahdeep Saigal, Amar Upadhyay, Armaan Kohli, Diandra Soares, Gautam Gulati, Imam Siddiqui, Mandana Karimi, Mandeep Bevli, Pooja Bedi, Rahul Mahajan, Raja Choudhary and Shweta Tiwari, with Dolly Bindra, Kamal Rashid Khan, Sapna Bhavnani as Wild card entries.
According to you, who have been the highest paid contestants on Bigg Boss?
In my opinion, Navjot Singh Sidhu was the highest paid. I think other highly paid contestants could include Anup Jalota, Pamela Anderson, The Great Khali, Hina Khan, Tanisha Mukherjee, Rahul Dev and Shweta Tiwari. Contrary to general public opinion, I don’t believe Shilpa Shinde was among the highest paid. That news could have been a PR plug.
Who do you think have the best chances for winning Bigg Boss 13 and why?
Shenaz Gill is quite a character and that makes for good entertainment. Whether she can convert that into votes, remains to be seen. Paras Chhabra has been playing well too. His friendship with Mahira Sharma has given her a stable footing. Talking about Mahira, she’s a now-on now-off contestant and only provides drama in installments. But somehow I feel, she can be a dark horse if she really wants to. Asim Riaz has been a good friend to Siddharth Shukla and has played the dosti part well, but there’s not much to him unless he decides to come completely on his own. Rashmi Desai is a strong contender for being a cool package of drama and decent entertainment. But she should immediately come out of her Siddharth-fascination and get brownie points for her own personality. Now coming to Siddharth, he seems to attract the wrong kind of attention all the time, which makes him a perfect TRP-hogger. If he wins Bigg Boss, the Boss will be the loser.
Fresh from the super success of Housefull 4 and appreciation for her work for Ujda Chaman, ace makeup, hair and prosthetic character designer Preetisheel Singh is basking in the glory of critical acclaim for her latest film Bala… or should we say, for having constructed Ayushmann Khurrana’s shining baldpate. Tch tch! 😉
“The film reviews have been overwhelming and the audience reaction stupendous,” chirps the lady. “Never before has makeup, hair and prosthetic been so much in the limelight as in these last three weeks… and I’m loving it and lapping up all the attention,” she winks.
Preetisheel deserves it. After all, it wasn’t long ago that she was going through testing times, having to contend with the three baldie looks, and how to make them stand out and look different from each other. While Akshay Kumar’s look in Housefull 4 got that imposing moustache, Sunny Singh’s character in Ujda Chaman was given a distinctive stubble.
It’s been a fabulous year for the makeover wiz. Just last month, another of her films, Chhichhore, garnered great acclaim for the starcast’s young and old looks designed by Preetisheel. Her Tamil film Bigil starring Kollywood megastar Vijay is also the talk of the Southern industry from a fortnight.
Plus, apart from Housefull 4, both Chhichhore and Bigil have emerged great money spinners at the box-office, and now Bollywood has high expectations from Bala to ring in the greens next.
But for Preetisheel, it’s no time to rest. The National Award-winning character designer is already super-busy, working on her upcoming projects which include the Nawazuddin Siddiqui-Radhika Apte-starrer Raat Akeli Hai, Kartik Aaryan-Bhumi Pednekar-starrer Pati Patni Aur Woh, Kangana Ranaut-starrers Panga and Dhaakad, and Bhansali Productions’ Tuesdays and Fridays.
Never one to shy away from standing by social causes, actress Juhi Chawla has come in strong support of the Cauvery Calling campaign of tree plantations for revitalizing India’s rivers, started by Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev of Isha Foundation.
This week, Juhi put out an impacting video on social media, saying that she will meet up with ten selected people who participate in the Cauvery Calling campaign by planting the maximum trees.
“The campaign plans to plant more than 200 crore trees in the Cauvery basin in the next 12 years to help rejuvenate the Cauvery river,” she informs and asks her fans to donate and support her on www.JuhiChawla.CauveryCalling.org to plant trees, or begin a fundraising campaign of their own.
Elaborating on her message, Juhi says, ”My journey of campaigning for rivers started in 2017, when Sadhguru spoke about the dying state of our rivers and the urgency of the matter. I hope in my lifetime, I am able to see our rivers flow again and tell the future generation that I was a part of this movement.”
A first of its kind, the Cauvery Calling campaign aims to aid farmers to plant crores of trees in the Cauvery basin across the states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. This is expected to replenish organic content in the soil and increase water retention in the Cauvery basin by an estimated 40%. It can in turn help farmers in the region to switch to agroforestry (tree-based farming), which has the potential to multiply their incomes by 300 to 800 percent in around five to seven years.
The campaign stresses that if one of us tries to plant a million trees, it will be a huge task. But, if million of us plant just one tree each, we will have a million trees in no time at all. Thus, it is no wonder why Juhi asks her fans not to send her gifts, cards or flowers on her upcoming birthday on November 13, but instead support the campaign for making the world a greener place.
It can be noted here, that earlier Juhi was also part of Sadhguru’s Rally for Rivers (RFR) project to raise awareness about the significance and importance of rivers in our lives.
National Award-winning make-up, hair and prosthetic look designer Preetisheel Singh
After Bajirao Mastani, Sanjay Leela Bhansali repeated Preetisheel Singh for Padmaavat. She designed the looks of all the main starcast including Ranveer Singh (as the evil ruler Alauddin Khilji), Deepika Padukone (as the legendary queen Padmavati) and Shahid Kapoor (as the Rajput ruler Ratan Singh). Viewers and film critics alike, were awestruck with the results, with Preetisheel emerging the undisputed No.1 make-up, hair and prosthetic look designer in the film industry.
More recently, she worked on Nitesh Tiwari’s Chhichhore where she designed multiple young and old-age looks for an ensemble lead cast. The film has crossed the 200 crore mark at the box-office.
Her bald look of Akshay Kumar for Housefull 4 has also been a lot in the news and the film is about to reach the 200 crore mark at the box-office. Akshay has also complimented her work a lot.
She has also done the make-up and prosthetic for actors in films like Shivaay, Haider, Hawaizaada, Housefull 3, Rangoon, Brothers, Talwar, Finding Fanny, Parched, Mom, Ghayal Once Again, PM Narendra Modi, Romeo Akbar Walter (RAW), Gone Kesh, Bhavesh Joshi Superhero, Bharat, Malaal, Ujda Chaman and the Tamil/Hindi film 24.
She received the ‘National Film Award for Best Makeup’ for the pre-Mughal historical epic Nanak Shah Fakir based on the life of Guru Nanak, wherein she designed the looks for all the characters in the movie. The film re-released sometime ago through Viacom18 Motion Pictures amid controversy.
Preetisheel’s work of creating believable ghost-figures for the recent horror film House Next Door has also been praised a lot. The film, which released in three languages (as House Next Door in Hindi, Aval in Tamil and Gruham in Telugu) garnered critical acclaim and earned a lot of positive reviews for her work.
Preetisheel also received a lot of praise once again, for her work in the film 102 Not Out directed by Umesh Shukla. She designed the looks for Amitabh Bachchan as a 102-year-old man, as well as for Rishi Kapoor playing his 75-year-old son.
She also designed dual young and old looks for Madhuri Dixit for an advertisement which garnered a lot of traction. Apart from this she designed a Frankenstein mask just for fun, which turned out to be a rage on social media.
Preetisheel received abundant attention once again for working on Rishi Kapoor’s look of a devout Muslim in Anubhav Sinha’sMulk as well as for Ayushmann Khurrana’s get-ups in Andhadhun.
After a success hattrick with Padmaavat, 102 Not Out, Mulk and Andhadhun, she has also begun receiving a lot of offers down South. She handled the make-up and prosthetic for the Tamil film Boomerang, where she has worked on the looks for famous Tamil actor Ataharvaa Murali. Her film Bigil with Southern superstar Vijay is a blockbuster. She achieved a double-hattrick with Chhichhore and Housefull 4, and Bigil emerging superhits.
Preetisheel also curated the look for Nawazuddin Siddiqui for the film Thackeray; the biopic on Shiv Sena supremo Balasaheb Thackeray. The film received rave reviews and special praise for the way Nawazuddin resembled Balasaheb Thackeray.
Preetisheel’s work will soon be showcased once again in Ayushmann Khurrana-starrer Bala, Nawazuddin Siddiqui-Radhika Apte-starrer Raat Akeli Hai, Kangana Ranaut-starrers Panga and Dhaakad, Kartik Aaryan–Bhumi Pednekar-starrer Pati Patni Aur Woh and Bhansali Productions’Tuesdays and Fridays.
She has also set up India’s first make-up and prosthetic lab called Da Makeup Lab at Versova, Mumbai and her goal is to bring standards of make-up and prosthetic in India at par with Hollywood.
Last but not the least, Preetisheel is about to begin her own school of makeup design, called ‘Preetisheel School of Character Design’.
Some links which might interest you:
Videos of look tests during the making of Padmaavat:
While Chhichhore has crossed the 200 crore mark, and Housefull 4 is roaring at the box-office with a collection of 53.22 crore in just three days, another movie of National Award-winning makeup and prosthetic character designer Preetisheel Singh is doing stupendous business.
Bigil is the latest blockbuster from Tamil film industry Kollywood’s megastar Vijay, who has become synonymous with Diwali releases in the South, as Rajinikanth is with Pongal or Salman Khan is with Eid in Bollywood. Recently, Shah Rukh Khan described Bigil as Chak De on steroids.
For the movie, Preetisheel has designed two looks for Vijay in a double role, one a footballer and the other as a gangster. “Bigil was a very exciting project as we had to do two different generation looks,” says Preetisheel.
“Vijay Sir doesn’t speak much but is a gem of a person. My experience with him has been amazing. He is very welcoming and very easy to talk to,” she quips, adding that she has curated another look with him for a movie which will go on floors soon.
Preetisheel has earlier achieved a hattrick a year ago, when three of her movies Padmaavat, 102 Not Out and Mulk hit the bulls eye. In recent months she has also garnered abundant praise about her work for Andhadhun and Thackeray.
She has been behind some of the best looks of a plethora of top Bollywood stars like Ajay Devgn, Akshay Kumar, Amitabh Bachchan, Ayushmann Khurrana, Deepika Padukone, Kangana Ranaut, Madhuri Dixit, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Radhika Apte, Ranveer Singh, Salman Khan, Shahid Kapoor & Sunny Deol.
Her work will soon be seen in forthcoming movies like the Nawazuddin Siddiqui-Radhika Apte-starrer Raat Akeli Hai, Ayushmann Khurrana-starrer Bala, Kartik Aaryan-Bhumi Pednekar-starrer Pati Patni Aur Woh, Sunny Singh-starrer Ujda Chaman, Kangana Ranaut-starrers Panga and Dhaakad, and Bhansali Productions’ Tuesdays and Fridays.
Bollywood’s only PR guru Dale Bhagwagar is also the only specialist on Bigg Boss. Having handled the PR for a full 20 contestants while they have been on the controversial show, Dale also has guts to call a spade a spade. He boldly addresses queries in this exclusive no-holds-barred interview to QNA India.
Bigg Boss 13 has shifted from Lonavla to Filmcity Studios in Goregaon, Mumbai. Do you think it’s a good move?
Dale Bhagwagar: That fresh breath of Lonavla air that the Bigg Boss Housemates felt in the garden area is missing. Also, knowing that they were far away from Mumbai city, gave the contestants a feel of being separated from their near and dear ones, which went perfectly with the show’s concept. That is now missing too.
But being at Filmcity, has its own share of advantages too. Availability for props, food items, staff etc would definitely be better when in Mumbai. Travel time for staff and Salman Khan is less.
Moreover, security is better as Filmcity has two security gates before one reaches any studio floor. The distance between the first and second gate is almost 2 kilometers. So for any anti-Bigg Boss protest morchas to walk all the way, would be quite a task, and also provide the makers ample time to call for police help, just in case any protest morcha breaks through the first security gate.
Bigg Boss House
Will Bigg Boss 13 get better TRPs than last season?
Dale Bhagwagar: I have a feeling Bigg Boss TRPs may not rise with the passing of its seasons now. The reasons are many. The attention span of people have changed. Also, most youth want to watch shows on the go, and not sit in front of television sets anymore. Though on Voot, the show has limited its visibility by being absent on YouTube; the most popular platform for videos.
Another reason is that the show has deviated from its original concept of being truthful to reality television, and feels more and more like a game show. Being a publicist in the entertainment field and having handled the PR for the maximum Bigg Boss contestants and watched them closely, I’m of the impression that the media publicity for the show also needs more innovativeness and improvement.
Many more journalists need to receive its daily synopsis and publicity images. The PR images for the media could be of better size, correct format and higher resolution too. This would make the journalist’s job of covering Bigg Boss, easier. Scribes may then refrain from searching and lifting random images from FB pages or channel website, which may not satisfy their needs for a great image-resolution.
Apart from all this, one has to also understand that Gen Z does not sit and watch TV serials. So most of the times, they identify quite less with the TV stars which feature more and more on Bigg Boss nowadays. All these and many more transformational changes could give the fortunes of Bigg Boss a punchy boost.
Bigg Boss approaches a lot of celebrities, but only a few of them finally go to the Bigg Boss House. Do you think this is a promotional ploy by the makers to create a wider buzz for the show before it rolls?
Bollywood PR Dale Bhagwagar
Dale Bhagwagar: Ha ha! It seems you have stumbled upon some secret. Yes, this does create a buzz initially, as not all who are approached are aware of the secrecy clause in BB contracts. So they yap and talk and hint, or tell their friends that they have been approached for Bigg Boss. Some even pompously write on FB that BB approaches them every year. But I don’t think that kind of PR buzz helps them. If they really want to be on the show by getting in the limelight, or catch the attention of the makers, there are other intelligent PR strategies and methods.
What if the selection process goes on public voting?
Dale Bhagwagar: That could be an interesting turn. But the public will have to see the drama quotient of the contestants and judge by that. Only then will it work well. Hai na.
Is it better to have only celebrities in Bigg Boss or is it better to have common people with celebrities?
Dale Bhagwagar: The hero of the show should be the concept. I feel, the best thing for Bigg Boss will be to focus on its original ‘reality television’ format and reduce the number of games and tasks. I also strongly feel that Bigg Boss should have two seasons every year — one with celebs and another with commoners.
What do you have to say about most contestants who win Bigg Boss, but are not able to remain in the news after winning? What could be the reason?
Dale Bhagwagar: The primary reason for this is that success goes to their head. The months they spend in isolation makes them believe that the show has made superstars out of them. When they meet their family and friends on the show, they hear stories of how they are being talked about in the outside world; about how famous they have become etc etc etc. They think they have ‘arrived’ and this thought goes to their head.
When they come out they are mobbed, first by the media and then by the people on the streets. They get a lot of instant recognition. In all this hullabaloo, most of them forget that PR plays an important role in the imaging, branding and consistency of any publicity exercise.
What they completely fail to realize is that long-term fame is not about hype, but about imaging and branding. That is why so many Bigg Boss contestants lose out in the long run, with most of these disappearing into oblivion. Even the winners.
“All Bollywood actresses need to understand and accept that controversies are a ‘business’ for media. Only when they adapt, is when they will be able to take advantage of the situations media presents. Otherwise, they’ll risk resisting change, till a new generation comes and laps it up.” -Dale Bhagwagar
Close on the heels of the stupendous success of Nitesh Tiwari’s Chhichhore, National Award-winning makeup and prosthetic character design specialist is coming up with not one, two, but three stunners. And all the three films have taken the film industry imagination by storm.
Yes! We are talking about none other than the three baldie looks of Bollywood, which are the talk of the town from a while now. The wiz behind the looks of Akshay Kumar as Bala in the Farhad Samji-directed Housefull 4, Ayushmann Khurrana in Amar Kaushik’s movie Bala and Sunny Singh in Abhishek Pathak’s Ujda Chaman, is look designer Preetisheel Singh.
What has particularly surprised many, is the fact that inspite of all the three looks being of men going bald, Preetisheel has deftly designed them in a way that all of them look ending different on the screen. While Akshay has an imposing mouche to go with the look, Ayushmaan has a receding hairline, and Sunny Singh has a moustache and stubble to match his balding look.
It can be noted here that Preetisheel even received accolades for her transformational look makeovers in movies like Padmaavat, Mom, 102 Not Out, Mulk and Thackeray some time ago.
She is now excited for her forthcoming releases which include an interesting mix of movies like the Nawazuddin Siddiqui-Radhika Apte-starrer Raat Akeli Hai, Kartik Aaryan-Bhumi Pednekar-starrer Pati Patni Aur Woh, Southern superstar Vijay’s next Bigil, Kangana Ranaut-starrers Panga and Dhaakad, and Bhansali Productions’ Tuesdays and Fridays.
What’s more! The talented lady is also preparing to launch the ‘Preetisheel School of Character Design’ at her new sprawling office and workshop of her company ‘Da Makeup Lab’ at Versova, Mumbai.
Tanushree Dutta seeks FRESH PROBE on Nana Patekar issue
Recently, the Mumbai Police submitted a closure report for #MeToo cases like Tanushree Dutta’s, who accused Nana Patekar of sexual harassment during the shoot of a song in 2008. Due to lack of evidence and witness statement not supporting Dutta’s story the case was closed and reported as ‘filed with malicious intentions’. But this week, Tanushree has written an e-mail to the Commissioner of Police, asking for a fresh probe in the case against Patekar. As such cases drag on, industry insiders discuss if Bollywood can wipe the #MeToo scar off its damaged face.
When the #MeToo movement hit the world, no one knew its ripple effect would reach so many shores. Bollywood, which has forever been an insulated kingdom of filmy families, known for its tight-lipped fraternity, was shockingly exposed.
Though most people have never raised their voices about the relatively shadier going-ons of the world’s largest movie industry, the #MeToo movement saw a handful of women come forward and speak up of issues old and new.
One would think that in the aftermath, Bollywood and the men accused, would be reeling under, unable to face the world. But if the slew of clean chits given are to be considered, the tide seems to be flowing the other way.
Clean chits
Take into account how actress Tanushree Dutta’s FIR with Oshiwara Police Station against Nana Patekar, accusing him of sexually harassing her during the shooting of a song on the sets of ‘Horn Ok Please’ in 2008, concluded. The Mumbai police gave Patekar a clean chit in the case, filing a report that said Tanushree’s complaint could have been lodged to seek revenge and that it seemed ‘malicious and fake’. The actress has claimed that the police have colluded with the veteran actor.
Vikas Bahl
In another such instance, Vikas Bahl, the director of Queen who was accused of sexual harassment by an employee of Phantom Films, has been cleared of all charges. An internal inquiry by Reliance Entertainment cleared him and reinstated him as the director of the Hrithik Roshan film Super 30 before its release.
Vinta Nanda and Alok Nath
Well known for his sanskaari roles in top budget films, actor Alok Nath was accused of rape, sexual harassment and inappropriate behavior, by atleast three women, one of them being writer-director-producer Vinta Nanda. Nanda had accused Nath in a Facebook post that went viral, after which Nath had filed a defamation suit against her. Nanda filed an FIR against Nath, alleging rape. In January 2019, the Mumbai sessions court granted anticipatory bail to the actor, observing that Nanda did not lodge the report immediately after the alleged incident for her own benefit. The court also observed that possibility cannot be ruled out that Nath has been falsely accused in the crime.
Karan Oberoi receives tremendous support
Pooja Bedi and Karan Oberoi
TV actor Karan Oberoi, who was accused of rape and extortion by a woman, was granted bail by the Bombay High Court, about a month after his arrest. Oberoi has since been seen at a demonstration highlighting #MenToo; a campaign to create awareness about cases where men are falsely accused of rape and other such charges by women. In what is a shocking turn of events, the person who made the accusation, was arrested for ‘falsely’ implicating Oberoi.
Soni Razdan – Mahesh Bhatt
But a global movement like #MeToo will hardly die down anytime soon, says actress-filmmaker Soni Razdan, wife of filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt. Razdan feels, “A significant movement like this cannot simply go away. There has been a seismic shift and in future, people who are violated in such a manner, won’t be quiet anymore. That also implies, others will learn to conduct themselves better.” Razdan had also shared a past encounter of sexual harassment with a news outlet at the peak of the #MeToo movement, where she had narrated how during a film shoot, somebody had tried to rape her.
Gender neutral should be the future
Poojita Chowdhury
Poojita Chowdhury, a talented filmmaker (and daughter of Renuka Chowdhury, the former Union minister of State for Ministry of Women and Child Development), says “It is unfair and unfortunate when people who have committed crimes are protected and get away. But I believe that a new order is emerging out of this for the greater good, and it is not all hopeless. Patriarchy is very deeply entrenched for centuries, so it’s not going to be easy to change the status quo.”
Chowdhury’s film, Gender Bender, is about changing gender roles and rules around work and features real women in traditionally male jobs, and daughters who work with their fathers. “This is where its relevant to the movement, because ultimately it is about evolving into a society, where work, talent and opportunity are gender neutral spaces — the right of every person, be it man or woman, to work with respect, dignity and same opportunity,” she says.
Sifting the real from the fake
Bollywood’s only PR guru Dale Bhagwagar gets philosophical, saying, “When God created humans — the highest among the living species — he created man and woman. Man went on to create society and a class divide between the rich and poor. With time, another divide took birth in the form of racism — the genetics and colour divide between black and white. Now thanks to the #MeToo movement, humans have been introduced to the ultimate divide — between man and woman themselves. And in India, the world’s largest film industry, Bollywood, is most impacted.”
Dale Bhagwagar
“The movement has left a scar, not only on Bollywood, but on the fabric of society,” adds the PR consultant. But Bhagwagar points out that Bollywood’s version of #MeToo has been very different from Hollywood’s. “Here, 97 percent of the ladies, who came forward with issues had nothing concrete to say,” he feels. “They were more or less being biased or vindictive towards men. Inspite of that, our scandal-hungry media lapped up all of that and more, turning the voices into a huge campaign, probably for the sake of extra eyeballs, hit rate and TRPs.”
He feels that with the exception of Vinta Nanda, whose rape charges warrant serious attention, the others said things like ‘he tried to touch me’, ‘he tried to feel me up’, ‘he tried to kiss me’, ‘he put his hand around my waist’, ‘he put his hand on my shoulder’ and similar things. “The guys did not molest, they didn’t force — they probably tried their luck by casual flirting. But the #MeToo gals named and shamed guys in the media, and put a blot on their brand and image forever for that,” says Bhagwagar. Ironically, some of the names featured in the Wikipedia #MeToo page have been his ex-clients. These include Vinta Nanda, Mandana Karimi, Elnaaz Norouzi and Shama Sikander.
Pooja Bedi, a strong voice behind her friend Karan Oberoi’s recent misfortunes, couldn’t share her thoughts with us due to a hectic schedule of spearheading a movement called ‘Men Too’. According to The Quint, Bedi said, “Taking into consideration the history of our country and the patriarchal society that we live in, there are times when a rape victim goes to the police station and her complaint does not even get registered. That is wrong. So, we need laws against rape and such violence. But at the same time, if women are misusing the law that is meant to protect them, we need to think about how to protect the rights of the man as well.”
Razdan thinks it is power that creates this sort of an imbalance. People inclined to, will always misuse it and in a film industry as huge as Bollywood, there is no one player involved, she believes. “We cannot paint everyone with the same brush. I feel everyone should speak up, gender notwithstanding. Making someone guilty until proven innocent is not fair and one must support the real victims,” she says matter-of-factly.
The real movement trudges along
Chowdhury believes the movement helps to create space for human potential and is not just a ‘battle of the sexes’. On hindsight, to say that anyone who has been named has lost out on opportunities, may well be speaking too soon. Most of the men have returned to work, some like Alok Nath having even added a hit like De De Pyaar De to the cap.
Bhagwagar who was hired for crisis management by one of the men whose name had popped up in #MeToo, did a short-term guerrilla PR (stealth) exercise for him. “I believed in the guy’s innocence, so I admit, I took steps to drown the girl’s articles in the media with some spin and SEO. But not everyone was as lucky as my PR client. A lot of men now have to live with the damages to their online image for life,” he says.
That said, the way ahead for the real victims of MeToo is somewhat blurry. The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013, has a few obvious drawbacks and so, old cases of harassment can’t be taken into consideration. Internal committees might do their job well but that’s not transparent enough. While a robust set of gender neutral laws can ensure people get their voices heard and justice is met, the playing field, especially in Bollywood, may not be even.
Going ahead
“There are committees in every office, but we don’t see them as very effective. But we still have to keep at building such outreach programmes and institutions that will get a firm grip of how to deal with authentic cases over time,” says Razdan.
Tanushree Dutta
So what do the women who have finally found the strength to speak up, do until justice is met? A good example is Tanushree, the one who began the movement in Bollywood. After her case was shut, Tanushree told the Indian Express, “I pray that I never have to deal with this kind of toxicity ever again in life. I am tired of fighting alone against oppressors, bullies and a corrupt system. But please don’t take this example to mean that you will not be heard when you speak up. Continue to expose these creeps through social media and other platforms so that in future people would think twice before troubling an innocent young girl. I still believe I will get justice and victory will be mine. How, only time will tell.”
Chowdhury summarizes the movement’s true effect succinctly. “It’s like a volcano that has erupted. So in the aftermath of such an eruption, there will be consequences. But it is very early to say that it has scarred men to work with women, or that the latter will lose out on work opportunities. Hopefully, the larger outcome of this movement will set a new standard of ethics, accountability and personal conduct across professions, for both men and women. The critical thing now is to use this time not to settle back into the old system.”
