NEW DELHI : India’s regional language cinema stars may not be as much in the limelight as their Bollywood counterparts, but are putting their best foot forward to keep awareness campaigns going on the covid-19 pandemic.
South Indian superstars such as Rajinikanth, Nayanthara, Suriya, Karthi and Vijay Sethupathi are among actors who have pitched in to help daily wagers. Punjabi singer and actor Diljit Dosanjh, rapper Sidhu Moose Wala, and comedian Jaswinder Bhalla collaborated with police to put out videos about the influx of non-resident Indians from US, the UK and Italy who have evaded testing, quarantine, and isolation, thus putting lives around them at risk.
“Use of celebrities (to put out messages) is always positive. However, if they have to use their power, they should use it in conjunction with civic and health authorities to put out relevant stuff. In this case, random messaging won’t work," said Sandeep Goyal, chief mentor at the Indian Institute of Human Brands.
Putting these videos out on platforms such as TikTok can be helpful as the platforms are a rage in places such as Punjab and most modes of communication such as newspapers are not accessible. Industry experts have also often pointed to the loyal and passionate fan engagement regional stars elicit on social media.
Goyal said most Bollywood celebrities had remained either silent or basic in their approach to spread awareness, till actor Kartik Aaryan put out a monologue, modelled on the popular one from Pyaar Ka Punchnama, to talk about the urgent need for social distancing.
The key for celebrities is to turn the message into an interesting story with candour and humility, said M.G. Parameswaran, brand strategist and founder of Brand-Building.com. “Otherwise, it’s not like they are a great authority on hygiene or haven’t been used to communicate social purposes earlier," he said.
Earlier in the week, actors across languages including Amitabh Bachchan, Rajnikanth, Ranbir Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra, Alia Bhatt, Chiranjeevi, Mohanlal, Mammootty, Sonalee, Prosenjit Chatterjee, Shiva Rajkumar, and Dosanjh came together for a short film titled Family, again shot at home, to advocate social distancing and support for daily wagers.
