Red carpet, shutterbugs, fan following, fame, wealth, they want it served all…..at once….in one palate! The so called ‘Show Biz’ attracts innumerable contenders to become famous. Pooja Gosain takes a sneak peek inside the intricacy of the fashion and film industry.. beyond the shutterbugs and looks at the other side of the world of glitz and glamour….to help you cope up with the social media pressure of a celebrity lifestyle!
Celebrities have always been trend setters and trend makers. Most of the choices we make are inspired by projected preferences of our favourite celebrity-in one way or the other! With the popularity of social media paradigm, our private lives have become public too. Be it our holidaying trips or day to day photographs of usual affairs, everything is up on the public portals where the attempt is to ape and project a celebrity lifestyle. It could be a way to satiate our need of being important or the means by which one believes people will remember them. But beyond the celebrated lifestyles (which we enthusiastically try to mimic!), there is another side which needs to be pondered upon..
Media Pressure churns up one’s individuality
The celebrities are constantly in limelight and have the pressure to maintain their celebrity character all the time which deprives them of having a personal space. Imagine the horror of being under the scanner most of the time and trying to maintain and project an aura of perfection! Does not it begin to appear as a cage where you are being watched all the time? Many celebrities are in limelight more for their personal lives than their respective works. We have seen how that can take toll upon the happy lives of our favourite celebrities as in case of the Ranbir Kapoor’s relationship with Katrina Kaif where in a recent interview, he alleged that “It was really punctured by a lot of things – by baseless rumours and reports and perceptions and points-of-view.”
Depression
It was Deepika Padukone who broke the stigma engulfing the topic of depression for the first time on Indian television shedding light on how the alienation can take a toll upon the celebrities even despite the glamour of showbiz. At 36%, India has the highest rate of depression anywhere on the globe. There is need for an initiative to create awareness about anxiety and depression, and help people with it, particularly in the showbiz world where the competition to excel usually alienate you confining you within the limits of inescapable solitary confinement mentally and emotionally.
Falling prey to Addiction
The blinding lights of fame make you vulnerable. As we have all seen throughout the years, many celebrities and big name stars like Amy Winehouse, Whitney Houston tragically go hand in hand with addiction. Addiction is a serious, chronic and debilitating illness that is difficult to treat once you fall in the net. Even Ranbir Kapoor openly admitted to resorting to drugs during shooting of his movie ‘Rockstar’ because of the workload. The high-profile celebrities, stars turn to drugs and alcohols to manage the overwhelming pressure. The sad and tragic relationship some celebrities develop with drugs and alcohol needs to be talked about openly to evade the destructive impending effects.
Fame is an addictive drug
Fame changes a person’s life forever, and is felt more as an impact or “overnight” experience, rather than a gradual transition. And when the overnight experience is over, that is the time when it becomes hard for celebrities to handle the insecurity of being secluded. This is the time when they need the support of family and friends but unfortunately in many cases, this support fails to come to the rescue. The actor cum model Parveen Babi, model Geetanjali Nagpal and many more are witness to the downfall caused by succumbing under this pressure.
Quick tips to handle the social media pressure.
- Spend adequate time with family.
Meditate regularly.
Work out in gym or walk regularly (some form of physical exercise).
Always have a contingency plan ready in case it rains.
Make balance between work and personal life.
Spend time with friends who accept you as who you are!