Page 91 - Masala E-magazine Vol 9 Issue 5 April - May 2018
P. 91

Nepotism may have existed since the genesis of Bollywood,
             but it was Kangana Ranaut’s candid and daring interview
             on Koffee with Karan that drew everyone’s attention. The
             actress unabashedly called out Karan Johar by declaring him
             as a “snooty, fl ag-bearer of nepotism, who was intolerant to
             outsiders in the fi lm industry”. While the interview became
             a source of endless controversies, it also sparked a much-
             needed debate among celebrities and the public. The ballsy
             interview may have happened a year ago but the dust still
             hasn’t settled.


             Joining in on the crusade was actress Huma Qureshi, who laid
             out a constructive statement saying, “Not that star kids are not   Kangana Ranaut (left) and Alia Bhatt (right)
             talented, but the opportunities they get are far easier, projects
             far bigger and the budget for their fi lms is huge. So it’s not a
             level playing fi eld.”                                Actors hailing from fi lmy families, such as Alia Bhatt also came
                                                                  forward to have her say, “I wanted to be here and this was my
             Actor Ayushmann Khurrana added, “Alia Bhatt, Varun Dhawan   dream. My connection to the family has made things easy for
             and Ranbir Kapoor are talented. They are not getting fi lms just   me. I don’t know if it is a good thing or not. I don’t want to feel
             because they are star kids. But yes, they did get opportunities   apologetic about where I am today. Neither do I feel apologetic
             faster. I was 27 when I got Vicky Donor (2012). Had I been a star   about being my father’s daughter.”
             kid, I’d have got launched by 22 or 23.”             The ‘N’ word makes people uncomfortable about their self-
              “   Not that star kids are not talented,            positioning, so it wasn’t a surprise when Karan Johar had a

                                                                  rather defensive response. “It seems like we are criminals.
                  but the opportunities they get are far
                  easier, projects far bigger and the             It’s like everywhere we are slapped with legal notices as
                                                                  we are children of parents who are within the fi lm industry.”
                  budget for their  lms is huge. So it’s         Completely unapologetic about his choices, he kept his ‘movie
                                                                  mafi a’ tag intact by launching Ishaan Khattar, half-brother of
                  not a level playing  eld.       “              Shahid Kapoor, and Janhvi Kapoor, daughter of late Sridevi, in

                                             — HUMA QURESHI       Dhadak, which is scheduled to release later this July.
                                                                  In addition, the ever outspoken Kareena Kapoor Khan gave
                                                                  a rather apathetic response, “Doesn’t nepotism exist in
                                                                  every possible fi eld? But nobody addresses that? In family
                                                                  businesses, the son takes over. A politician’s son takes over
                                                                  his place. So I don’t understand why people are going on
                                                                  about it.” Belonging to Bollywood royalty, Bebo’s justifi cation
                                                                  of nepotism doesn’t come as a surprise but is nevertheless
                                                                  disappointing.

                                                                  No one doubts their commitment towards their work. But what
                                                                  is fundamentally different is the amount of opportunities that
             Ishaan Khattar and Janhvi Kapoor                     are waiting for the next generation of home-grown A-listers.
                                                                  Can outsiders survive in Bollywood after multiple box-offi ce
                                                                  failures? Probably not! While we recognise that star kids face
                                                                  enormous pressure of living up to their family names, it can’t
                                                                  be compared to the hardships an outsider encounters when
                                                                  they try to break into the industry.

                                                                  Hindi cinema over the years has become a family business,
                                                                  and thus, it is empowering to see some people rejecting
                                                                  the common occurrences. However, disparity still exists, so
                                                                  whether you support it or slam it, it is a reality that will quite
                                                                  possibly exist forever. With many claiming that it is the cause
                                                                  for Bollywood’s current mediocre content, we can only hope
             Huma Qureshi            Ayushmann Khurrana           that it doesn’t become the demise of Hindi cinema as well.


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