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The press in India always goes a little mad when I'm here. They believe I accomplish a lot more than I actually do when I'm abroad. One day they will catch on, and I'll no longer be a headline magnet..." That's a diary jotting of filmmaker Shekhar Kapur. No, his diary isn't a little black book, hidden under the mattress. It's an open page meant for anyone who enters his official website.
It's more an official blogsite in essence, with reams of blog, in verse and prose, telling us all about him. Journalists often ask Kapur about Hollywood. Yet, no one has received an answer as eloquent as this blogspeak: "Hollywood in its dying throes/ like a dragon in the agony of death/ desperately breathing fire/ that no longer burns/ whipping its tail/ to no avail/ for there it lies, belly up/ legs and tail thrashing/ senselessly/ its hunger and greed/ fuelled by bloated executives/ with egos fed/ by paid critics..." The verse runs on to reveal Kapur's views on Steven Spielberg's ethnic arrogance.
That's the world of virtual glamour, then. Bollywood celebrities have sensed there's a whole new space they can occupy, besides the silver screen. Some have taken tentative steps towards it through official websites ��� Kapur showcasing his verses and short stories, Manoj Bajpai displaying an archive of interviews at manojbajpai.net, Aishwarya Rai selling personalised merchandise in cyberspace (aishwaryaworld.com)... "I always wanted to be part of my fans' lives and make them a part of my world. The web seems to be the best way of doing so," writes Anil Kapoor on the homepage of his tastefully quiet website, anilkapoor.net.
However, it's Aishwarya Rai's site that probably keeps fans entertained longest. Here, they can assemble musical Ash eCards, play Ash games ("Unscramble Ash's face"), and see baby Ash pictures. There are even FAQs like: ���At the premiere of Bride and Prejudice in England, was Ash wearing fur?' Answer: ���No, it looked real, but it was fake fur.' Then there are the takeaways. Autographed pictures come free. But Ash Tshirts, Ash bags, Ash mugs and Ash bumper stickers come for a price, stated in dollars. Ash's America-based desi fans must feel more connected to her now.
Professional website masters, however, feel that official celebrity websites are too powerful tools to be restricted to fan fare. "Websites can open up international communication," says Arvind Iyer, designer of sites for Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Santosh Sivan, Manoj Bajpai, Shankar, Ehsaan and Loy, etc. "For instance, Vinod Chopra's brief to me was that the world should get to know him a little better through the site. Websites aren't meant for fans, they're meant for fellow professionals."
The problem, according to site masters, is that not all celebrities understand the medium. "In Bollywood, people underestimate the Internet," says Jalinder Autade, who designs sites for US clients, and has done Rajat Kapoor's website, rajatkapoor.com. "I saw Rajat Kapoor's posting on the Net asking for sponsors for his film Raghu Romeo, and told him that he was doing it wrong," continues Autade: "He should have an official website and route global interaction through it."
Since then, Kapoor has referred him to many Bollywood stars, but Autade hasn't been able to work with any of them.
"They make strange demands, like their site should have so many hits worldwide in a week," he laughs. "They also think it's a cheap service and balk at paying my fees!" Cybersquatting, or reserving an Internet domain name, especially of celebrities, for the purpose of selling it at a higher price later,compounds stars' woes.
Sushmita Sen, for instance, is fuming over a Canada-based gent who has squatted on the domain name www.sushmitasen.com. Shah Rukh Khan has already bought all possible domain names involving ���Shah Rukh Khan'. "Yet I find sites sporting my name," he says. "I could sue, but I guess people host sites in my name because they love me."
Meanwhile, another Bollywood Khan, in his perfectionist style, is taking his time to join the cyber gang. Aamir Khan's official site, aamirkhan.com says, "Hi, Right now I'm in the process of putting my official page together. Leave me your e-mail address and I'll let you know when it is up. Love, Aamir."