Curse of celebrity

The demands of living up to an image and the stress of performing even when the shutterbugs are not around, can push a celebrity over the edge, says Ritu Verma.
One day, you’re making news for being at the right place at the right time, and the next day, you’re a headline, as fashion designer Rohit Bal recently found out, when he suffered a heart attack.
While for some, it can act like a wake-up call, for others, caught in a downward spiral of fame, drugs and a fast lifestyle, it may be too late.In the West, as Amy Winehouse struggles publicly with drug and alcohol addiction, Michael Jackson succumbed to living life in a fishbowl. Recently, Bandit Queen actor Nirmal Pandey died of a cardiac failure at the age of 48, and some years ago, actress Parveen Babi, battling addiction and mental illness, was discovered dead in her Mumbai apartment. NRI hotelier Vikram Chatwal also made the front page of tabloids as he emerged after rehab from a Mumbai hospital.
As the enfant terrible of Indian fashion, known for his excesses, recovers, his sister Aruna Bal Sharma says, “Rohit’s business involves commitments and tight deadlines. This put him under a lot of pressure.”
Jewellery designer Farah Ali Khan remarks, “Rohit is a Page 3 regular. Generally, people who are single, like him, are prone to partying. Creativity and partying seem to form an important chunk of his life.”
Everything comes with a price tag and so does fame. Says cardiac surgeon Naresh Trehan, chairman & managing director of Medanta Medicity, where Rohit is being treated, “Lack of exercise, high cholesterol food, smoking and primarily ‘stress’ are responsible for Rohit suffering from a heart attack in his 40s. If you stop listening to your body, you end up paying a high price.”
We live in an age where time is money and nobody wants to be left behind in the race. In a fast-paced lifestyle where to be seen is to be heard, the pressure of constantly living up to an image takes its toll. Vinta Nanda, filmmaker-writer-social activist advises, “I know many celebrities who don’t take a weekend off in an entire year. It’s funny, really, how one runs after money and then ends up in a hospital.”
Actor Raja Chaudhary underwent rehabilitation for anger management under Varsha Patkar, a clinical psychologist, who thinks it was the insecurity within his marriage that pushed him over the edge. She states, “Celebs are under pressure to be their best and are constantly under the scanner. At times, I feel sorry for them as a regular person doesn’t have to carry this extra baggage.”
Just a couple of months ago, DJ Aqeel broke the windscreen of his neighbour Dilip Chhabria’s new BMW. His wife Farah takes up for him, “Aqeel is not the kind to let stress affect him. In this case, he was under the influence of antibiotics, sedatives and alcohol. It was just that one time. Knowing Aqeel, Dilip also didn’t file any complaint.”
Actor-singer-writer Suchitra Krishnamoorthi, who came into the limelight with her first film Kabhi Haan, Kabhi Naa co-starring Shah Rukh Khan and then again during her very public fallout with then husband and filmmaker Shekhar Kapur, has learnt to keep an equilibrium. She reveals, “During my divorce, I stopped interacting with the media. I am someone who speaks her mind, and I didn’t want to look at the paper as I feared the sensational headlines.”
Actor Shah Rukh Khan once said, “I work for Shah Rukh Khan.” That’s probably the best way to deal with your celebrity status, by learning to disassociate from your public persona. Dr Patkar believes that many people, who have tasted success, find it tough to handle the lows. She adds, “They keep trying to attain the lost glory, many succeed too, but others risk emotional breakdown or take up alcohol and drugs.”
Suchitra adds, “You need to priorities things in your life. My debut movie attained great box-office success yet I chose to be a homemaker for 10 years. Apart from being an actor, I am a trained singer, a poet, painter and a writer by choice. Multitasking helps me unwind and stay sane.”
Remarks Farah, “People generally try to please everyone around them, which is never possible. Many times, I have chosen myself and my family over professional opportunities. This keeps me grounded.”
The trick is to let go and be an island of calm as life and its demands try to overtake you! Or take a tip out of superstar Amitabh Bachchan’s blog, where he talks about the importance of enjoying small joys, “In a busy, complicated life, that brings with it burden and pressure, it is remarkable how even the slightest gesture can rebuild and strengthen it. Simple things like opening a packet of fresh soap for the morning bath. A bottle of unused perfume that had lain waiting to express itself, waiting to be opened or positioned in a space which required for it to be seen without any malice or demand.”
ritu.verma@indiatimes.co.in
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