Alia Bhatt Shows A Mirror To Society and Opens Up About ‘Slut Shaming’

We often complain about the luxuries celebrities are blessed with. In our perception, actors have it easy in life, especially the star kids. Being born with a silver spoon, it’s easy to make it big in the industry, right?

But you know, there’s a flip side to everything. The grass is always greener on the other side. Societal norms and constructs have a deep impact on not just our lives, but theirs too, but in different ways of course.

Being in limelight comes with a price. One is judged and scrutinized for every action of theirs, be it whom you’re hanging out with, which dress you’re wearing, to how many men you’re dining with. Isn’t it intrusive?

Recently, actress Alia Bhatt, who’s proved her mettle with her acting skills, opened her heart out in an interview with HuffingtonPost and revealed how harsh the society can become when it comes judging. Yes, It very much affects them too.

She exclaims how every action of theirs is closely watched at, for they’re the role models, for many. Stardom comes with responsibility, she echoes,

“That you’ve to be correct all the time. That you don’t get the chance to be wrong. As a star, I am a role model and I need to convey the ‘right’ message — you see there’s a moral code sneaking in there. Young girls idealise you and follow your every move and you can’t deviate too far from a set construct.”

Alia suggests that even having an opinion becomes problematic because the opinion needs to suit the likes of the “society”.

“You can have opinions, but the opinion needs to be the right one or you’ll piss a whole lot of people off and trigger a shit-storm. It’s really hard if you think about it. You need to come across as happy, chirpy and pretend to be ultra-awesome like all the time. Nahi hai, yaar. I am having an awful day. I cannot pretend to be happy. Give me a day off, man. But no, as Alia Bhatt, I am always on duty, always acting.”

She also takes on the Indian value system that loves judging, especially girls for leading a life of their choice. On being asked about why actors often brush off relationship questions, unlike their Hollywood counterparts, Alia points out that the culture differs and girls including actresses are slut shamed for leading a sexually liberated life.

“Here, girls having multiple boyfriends is still a huge-ass deal and something that is frowned upon. I mean, look at Taylor Swift. She’s dated, like, everybody. But if she was here, she’d be totally shamed for making those choices. Her image and appeal would be very different. The reason actresses don’t talk about their private lives is because in our society there is a lot of slut-shaming. Eventually, I have a responsibility and I have to protect myself.”

Reiterating further, Alia says.

“Okay, suppose I say that but is it necessary that it stays that way? What if tomorrow I am not in love with him and feel differently about it? Then what? It’s not written in stone, is it? And I don’t want to be in a position where they come after me because I broke up with a dude. “Oh, aapka break-up ho gaya, ab agla kaun? Who’s next?” This shallow and stupid thinking is just the reality of our society which doesn’t allow women to be the way they’d like to be — free and independent.”

Being a public figure is as difficult, or may be harder, for the thin line between the professional and personal lives get blurred. Actors are humans, just like us. They have mood swings and show tantrums, just like all of us do. The only difference is that our actions may affect just a few around us, but theirs affects millions of people.