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Against the tide // Celebs test positive for insensitivity during Covid pandemic

Tue 24 Nov 2020    
EcoBalance
| 3 min read

The coronavirus pandemic has changed life as we know it and see it. Being positive has now acquired a whole new meaning. It’s a struggle for common folks to stay “positive” in life that is gloomy to put it mildly while trying to not get Covid “positive”.

As the virus has holed people in, everyone wants to escape the sordid reality of life. But only a few can afford it. Celebrities are bombarding their instafams with their fantastic vacations pictures. Blue waters, white sands, luxury resorts, sun-kissed bikini bods make for perfect pictures. But when millions around you are suffering, they are just crass, cold and careless display of privilege and inequality.

A number of Bollywood celebrities are currently in the Maldives. Actors Sonakshi Sinha, Rakul Preet Singh, Tara Sutaria and Aadar Jain, Disha Patani, Tiger Shroff, all have been sharing glimpses of their beach vacation.

The celebs living it up and showing it off in the times of a global pandemic have raised many eyebrows. They have been slammed and questioned for their tone-deafness and insensitivity when millions back home have serious health and bread & butter issues to keep them occupied. Are our celebrities totally self-consumed and cut off from the reality? Do they not see beyond their bubble of glam and glitz?

Responding to a tweet from senior journalist Barkha Dutt calling out the celeb insensitivity terming it “the November version of Banana Bread & Celebrities”, actor and producer Nikhil Dwivedi concurred. “Absolutely. Then we are surprised at the suddenness of the backlash the movie industry receives for unrelated reasons. We are so self-absorbed & so oblivious to what’s around us that we appear unempathetic (sic). Let me also assure it’s not like they are heartless, none are… just plain stupid”, he wrote.

And it’s not just the pandemic/lockdown fatigue that has led the celebrities to let their hair down even at the cost of appearing insensitive. Remember, choreographer Farah Khan appealed to the privileged “celebs” in March end to stop bombarding social media with their work-out videos during the lockdown as people were struggling to just survive. “I can understand that you all are privileged and you don’t have any other worries in this global pandemic except for looking after your figures.” Farah had thrown a stone in the shallow waters of celeb lives.

To be fair, many stars and celebs have reacted and acted positively — donating money to coronavirus-related causes, or just using their platform to raise awareness about the pandemic and the importance of social distancing. But there are many who have drawn criticism for their words or actions.

And no, it’s not just Indian celebs that seem cut-off from the reality. The celebs world over are equally tone-deaf.

The ultimate Insta queen and reality TV czarina, Kim Kardashian, recently drew flak after she shared photos from a lavish party held on a private island to celebrate her 40th birthday. She tweeted that the trip to a private island came after “two weeks of multiple health screens and asking everyone to quarantine”. She also wrote that she was “humbly reminded of how privileged my life is”. Privilege it is.

She is not the only Kardashian to have come across as vain and insensitive. It runs in the family. In the middle of a toilet paper shortage, Khloe Kardashian wrapped her sister Kourtney Kardashian’s entire house in toilet paper to “pull a prank”. It again showed how they are totally out of touch with the reality showing off wasting a commodity that millions of “less privileged” Americans were struggling to lay their hands on.

Then we had Madonna calling the coronavirus “the great equalizer” in a bizarre bathtub video. In the now-deleted video, a jewellery-clad Madonna treated her fans to a sermon about how the pandemic doesn’t discriminate between the rich and poor while soaking in a tub filled with flower petals. It was stinking of filthy privilege and lack of empathy.

Our celebrities definitely need a lesson or two in tone-deafness. Their infamous pictures and videos flaunting their mega-rich lives and sermonising on virtues of “staying positive” during a catastrophic health crisis are putting off to say the least. They are a bit like Marie Antoinette’s infamous quip, “let them eat cake,” with a topping of smugness.

I will go back to Farah Khan as she put it best in a interview after that video: “It’s not a global party guys, it’s a global pandemic.”


Disclaimer: All views and opinions expressed in The Brew View – our opinion section – are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of TheBrew.ae, the company, or any of its members.


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