The Short Road from Martyr to Miscreant

Back in January of this year, Shilpa Shetty could do no wrong. Appearing on the British show "Celebrity Big Brother" news of her apparent bouts against racist behavior came to the forefront and she became the poster child for racism against Indians in Britain. There were immediate protests all over India about how Jade Goodall, the instigator of the incident, should be banished and punished for her actions. Effigies of Goodall were burned in some of the conservative portions of India and protestors took to the streets seeking justice against the 'crimes' against Shetty. Bowing from tremendous international pressure, ministers and politicians all over Britain issued apologies to Shetty for her mistreatment and the British public ended up leading Shetty to victory against the 'Imperialist' British and showed them that even a little Indian woman can stand up to the might of the British Empire.

For weeks, that was all you would see on television. Just images of Shetty crying and the harsh image of Jade Goodall spitting vehemence in her direction followed by scenes of protest all over India. While there weren't many in the major cities, in some regional areas the protests over the incident were elevated to incidents of national crisis and people who probably never even heard of the show were protesting this fact. While I think it's admirable to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with a fellow countryman in the face of such blatant racism. I also think it's admirable to at least have a vague understanding of the facts simply before you protest the fact that someone has behaved in a supposedly racist manner. Does this mean I condone the racist actions against Shetty? Not in the least but having never seen the actual incident for myself, I can't see myself getting up in arms enough to spark a national protest. Perhaps if I knew more then I would.

Regardless, the incident helped push Shetty up into the winner's circle on the televised competition and so all was well in the world of Shilpa Shetty right? Well, apparently not. Shetty had previously stirred up a bit of controversy when she starred in the film "Phir Milenge" (which means "We'll Meet Again") which was a loose adaptation of the original Tom Hanks film, "Philadelphia". It was one of the first mainstream films in India to deal with AIDS / HIV awareness and though the movie was generally well received, many of the conservative sections of Indian society were a bit leery of the subject of the film. Still, the movie was applauded by critics and those who bothered to see it realized that the film dealt with the topic in a manner which helped raise awareness and spoke on the needs for increasing public knowledge on the dangers of contracting AIDS / HIV.

Since that time Shetty has become a spokeperson for the the AIDS / HIV awareness campaigns in India and recently she spoke at a seminar in New Delhi where one of the guests invited to speak was Hollywood Buddhist Richard Gere. Gere has often visited India to meet the Dalai Lama but also for his religious retreats and for occasional vacations. He is viewed as a westerner who appreciates Asian culture. So it was a bit of a shock for the ultra-conservatives of India when Gere kissed Shetty's hands, then here cheeks then took her in his arms and gave her yet another kiss on the cheek in full view of the audience and cameras. The result was immediate; the ultra-conservatives of the nation were up in arms and effigies were burned once again. However, this time Shetty wasn't the victim but the effigy being burned. People began protesting that this shameful display was against all Indian culture and that Gere and Shetty should be punished for doing so in public.

Now the reaction of most people would be that a kiss on the cheeks is nothing so big but apparently in India this is a major no-no. We can say that India is a very conservative country and that this was an unnecessary display by Gere and Shetty but I stand confused because I watch Hindi movies and there are more displays of suggestive dancing by scantily clad women all over the screen than this side of an MTV Spring Break special. On television, Indian serials are full of women carrying on affairs, murdering family members, and plotting world domination yet a kiss between two friends on stage at a rally meant to raise awareness apparently is now a slight against the conservative morals of the country. If that is not the most hypocritical thing I have ever seen then I don't know what is. I guess Shetty could always go back to England and meet up with Jade Goodall. At least they have something in common now.