Guest column | Pitfalls of stardom without claim to fame

Psychologists say unnecessary publicity and the glare of glamour is a different ball game when it comes to child stars, let alone star kids

A young man with no claim to fame, except that he is a superstar’s son, has landed himself in a soup. Strangely, barring his genealogy, the 23-year-old has absolutely no credentials to speak of, be it noteworthy educational qualifications, or an oeuvre of work, and yet he has been the blue-eyed boy of the paparazzi and has been touted as the ‘next star kid to look out for’ by media moguls and pundits.

Aryan Khan has 1.6 million followers on a particular social media site and an exclusive fan club to his name, and yet he does not have a single movie to his credit. (AFP)

The social media has been his crib and has cradled him with much aplomb. He was ‘papped’ partying hard with friends, ‘vacaying’ at gorgeous locations across the world and even captured as he left and entered his house. He has 1.6 million followers on a particular social media site and an exclusive fan club to his name, and yet he does not have a single movie to his credit, except lending his voice to a cartoon character in the dubbed version of a Hollywood film.

In a twist in the tale, the golden boy is in knee-deep trouble for substance abuse. The social media is abuzz with the viral videos and snapshots of the young man in custody and crying his heart out. The opinions are diverse and so are the reactions of the well-known and not-so-well-known.

Our very own Parliamentarian famous for his gargantuan vocabulary has not been found lacking in both–his grandiloquent expression of the situation and in doling out sympathy towards the distressed family. However, here are a few lessons to be learnt from the episode. For one, how much attention should be paid to star kids? Should they be exposed to this kind of unwarranted media attention or should there be a restriction?

Psychologists believe that most stars or public figures are adults and are, therefore, able to handle the media attention and pressure in a significantly better manner. Unnecessary publicity and the glare of glamour is a completely different ball game when it comes to child stars, let alone star kids who have not intentionally chosen to be a part of it. In foreign countries, a number of celebrities have chosen strict restrictions on how the paparazzi can take their pictures. It is also their right to have their kids’ faces blurred when ‘papped’. Such restriction can certainly allow the star kids some privacy and let them lead a peaceful life ‘far from the madding crowd’.

The second lesson to be learnt is what happens when the media attention is not unwarranted and the star kids start enjoying the celebrity status meted out to them ignoring their lack of individual identity? Once again psychologists believe that this is a threatening situation where the child stars or star kid get accustomed to fame and develop serious disorders as their lives are initially constantly broadcast and later they fight the threat of invisibility.

As they enjoy celebrity status, they tend to overstep some boundaries, which may be decency or law and order. The drama that has unfolded after the arrest of the superstar’s son is similar to what happened to the son of an actor-turned-parliamentarian. The actor has practically lived his life in and out of prison and rehabilitation centres. Between his stints at jail, Bollywood’s very own ‘Khalnayak’ showed streaks of talent and immense potential, which could have been exploited further had he been able to stay grounded.

The third lesson is for the media and the public. Both should learn to give some star kids some space and not unnecessarily harangue them or lavish them with undeserved idolatry. Let them attain celebrity on their own merits, rather than for their lineage.

sonrok15@gmail.com

(The writer is an associate professor at SD College, Ambala Cantt)