In the highly industrialised Bollywood of today, where glimpses of stars’ lives, appearances and opinion on their worth are so zealously controlled—paparazzi exertions en route airports and gyms notwithstanding—it is tough to imagine a time when film journalists had a bracing impact on silver-screen careers. The corporatisation of the industry has ensured that if journalists wield the pen, it is the ubiquitous agency publicist who controls the tone and tenor of the words that issue forth. Now, with the probe into Sushant Singh Rajput’s death taking a sudden twist towards the Bollywood ‘drug racket’, the hitherto shadowy publicists are in full, lurid view.
Except for a doughty minority, every star has a team of publicists from talent management agencies beavering away in the wings. Consummate shapers of stardom, they prepare schedules, shoots, public peeks and media interviews; their laptops and smartphones a repository of airbrushed explanations, glibly satisfactory excuses and photoshopped handouts. If you got a career, or dream of one, in Bollywood, you gotta hire a publicist.
Sushant Singh Rajput at a presser.
In a recent interview with Outlook, actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui had said, “It is simple to become a star—give me Rs 50 crore and I will make you one. There is huge machinery behind it.” Once an actor entrusts himself to an agency, the overriding demands of stardom make an ingress into personal choice: which parties to attend, what friends to acquire and brands to partner.
The power arrogated by agencies is now in the spotlight with Kawn, a well-known talent management agency, being in news. According to reports, Kawn is caught in the middle of the Bollywood drug probe by the Narcotics Control Bureau. Kwan owners Jaya Saha and Shruti Modi used to manage Sushant and Rhea Chakraborty. Jaya’s colleague Karishma Prakash is Deepika Padukone’s manager. Deepika herself has been a client of Kwan since 2013. The NCB agency has fixed a gimlet eye on an alleged WhatsApp chat about drugs between Karishma and Deepika. Rhea Chakraborty, too, claimed in an interview that co-star Sanjana Sanghi and publicist Rohini Iyer “troubled Sushant a lot”.
The trend of hiring a publicist who can handle the press and mould controversies and gossip to the actor’s advantage has been there for some time. And what is stardom if not for finely honed publicity? Dale Bhagwagar, the Bollywood publicist who has spent 23 years in the industry since 1997, remembers the fledgling nature of publicity in those days. “I introduced new trends and kind of tried to stay ahead of my time, so that was a big plus point for me. I understood SEO even before search engine optimisation came into prominence.”
Rhea Chakraborty at a film promotion.
Around 2008, Bhagwagar’s career reached its zenith—along with being a publicist, he was doubling up as spokesperson of his clients. His branding, too, was planted on firm ground. “I was the first to start legal agreements in Bollywood PR. I am the only publicist who is quoted in international publications like The New York Times to channels like CNN and Sky News as I handled public relations for Shilpa Shetty during Big Brother,” says Bhagwagar. In fact, when Shilpa was inside the Big Brother house, Bhagwagar was her only connect outside. He spoke on her behalf and held seven press conferences.
Bhagwagar states with candour that he is the only publicist who charges advance payment so that he doesn’t lose out on money. “I double up as a spokesperson whenever a client gets into a controversy. Bollywood celebrities know that I will be able to deal with the media in a politically correct manner, keeping intact their aura, while they can focus on their acting. I give them the assurance that they shouldn’t bother about controversies and clarifications,” he adds with breezy confidence.
However, in the past few years, he realised that he should stop focusing on big names and instead cultivate newer talent—not only are they more challenging to handle, they pay publicists nearly four to five times more money than established stars too. “Big names don’t really pay; they make PRs work on a token or a discounted amount. For them, publicists don’t really create the brand; they keep the brand in news. By doing this, I became the highest- charging publicist in Bollywood,” says Bhagwagar.
On a constant quest to keep their clients’ stars on the ascendant, a publicist understands the difference between good and bad publicity, when to underplay their client and when to go on an overdrive. And it’s a fact known by news-hungry media that film publicists have greater access to sets and stars. As Bhagwagar mentions, “Journalists want the power of pen and PRs want to control that pen. I prefer online media because that is the future and I am able to exercise more control.”
Priyanka Chopra addresses the media.
Gossips, scandals and breakups ‘sell’ the most. Bhagwagar—handler of such stars as Hrithik Roshan and Priyanka Chopra—admits that publicists aren’t loath to use anything that’s grist to the mill. “They are manipulators of the first order and I am no exception,” he says. In an environment where few journalists visit studios, publicists are the only connection between the media and the stars. This has made PRs more influential than ever before. Says publicist Parul Chawla of Picture N Kraft, “It’s we who create the stars. My team and I are constantly in pursuit to grab the most fortuitous chances for each client. I have focused on building each of my clients inside out.”
Often, it falls on publicists to extricate stars from the mess they are in by giving them sound advice and doubling up as spokespersons. And in the era of paid news and advertorials, it is they who direct journalists to write up their clients in a certain way.
Shilpa Shetty courts fame in Big Brother.
However, some publicists feel that it would be foolish to believe that publicity alone can make a star. Says Mahrukh Inayet of Studio Talk PR, “The person is as important as the persona. So, we advise clients to stay as close to who they really are.”
There was a time when moviestars were big, with a golden aureole framing their public persona. Social media has replaced that with accessibility and accountability. Public figures today can expect to be excoriated if they shoo away an issue with a ‘no comments’, for gorgeous looks or body alone is not enough. “While fans see stars as aspirational, they want them to be genuine. That’s the most important guideline in our rulebook. You can’t be in public life and be unaware of what impacts the public. It is important for celebrities to develop an informed opinion.”
But it’s not just reacting to crises or big releases, long-term strategies need to be formulated to convert artless ingenues into bona fide stars. “A complete analysis of who they are and where they stand in the ecosystem needs to be done. This intense and in-depth analysis helps us chart the way forward,” says Inayet. Trust is another huge factor. In order to be an effective publicist, a client must trust his/her publicist implicitly. Publicists also need to have their ear close to the ground, intercept and interpret gossip and rumour and strive to protect the client.
Hrithik Roshan snips at a red ribbon.
Then, there is the fact that every star is unique, and successful publicists need to be innovative to create a successful star. In an intensely competitive environment, situations are in a flux, strategies constantly evolve and are customised to each client. In public relations, one size does not fit all.
At a time when Bollywood stars are at their most vulnerable—being subject to state scrutiny as well as media obloquy—publicists stand shakily before their biggest challenge yet. To keep their clients from being blackened by the stickiest tar, while keeping their own pelts clean—it’s an obstacle course that should satisfy the sportiest professional.
