At one point or the other, everyone dreams of being presented on the big canvas. Seeing your mirror image brings images of grandeur and fame with a spotlight on you. What is it that makes the most introvert of the pack, to the most extrovert, inspire to be a celebrity? In the Reality talent hunt shows, you see the most unlikely candidate turn up for their few seconds fame. They act like court jesters and generally become the comic relief to the show. Is this the idea of fame?
It is an uncomfortable feeling and an embarrassing idea to admit to your dreams of being famous with friends or family. The idea is to secretly dream and live in a make-believe world of fame and success.
The idea of fame brings in, its own fantasies and significant benefits. Some of the fantasies go like this that when famous, you can go anywhere and everywhere and your reputation would be always preceding you. There would be a metaphoric red carpet laid down for you. People would be impressed and admire you for your accomplishments. The strangers would treat you like a star and be warm with you.
When you are famous, you will be safe from rejection. With fame, you would be put on a pedestal and no one would reject you. You won’t have to win over every new person. People would get flattered and pleased to be associated with you, getting their photos clicked. It would be their dream come true to see you in flesh. They would panic and be nervous to approach you. Your desires would be on everybody’s wish list. In public places, your comfort and requirements would take precedence. People would be making efforts to pacify you and take your tantrums in their stride. Your wish and command would be given top priority.
Sadly, all this is partially true and the real celebrities know what it takes to be famous. The sacrifices involved and the invasion of one’s innermost secrets and privacy. A small group of celebrities will always contrast painfully with the obscurity of the many. The world is not generally kind towards famous for long. Being famous upsets people. They will resent but will try to obscure the feelings, but it is never somnolent for very long. People connect fame with visibility, and it begins to haunt the lesser person unduly and make them feel smaller, inconsequential and irrelevant. In a larger context, they will feel that the world has treated them unjustly.
So soon enough, the world will start to go through the skeletons in the celebrity’s cupboards, it will comment negatively on their appearance, it will pour over their setbacks, it will judge their relationships, it will mock their new moves. They would be critiqued on their every appearance, every posture, every expression possible.
Fame comes with a double-edged sword that is ready to chop off your character and cruel judgments would be passed by people totally unknown to you. You would be at the mercy of the unknown where scanning the media would be self-inflicted torture. Malicious words would taunt you, Twitterati would be at your neck with their trolls. In normal lives, one nasty remark is enough to scar you for days. But for the famous, it is an incessant flow of vitriolic that can be damaging to any sane person’s psyche.
So much of slander, libel but no solutions since the judges are the general public with half-truths and lies embedded in their minds that no magician can erase.
To sum up: Fame makes you visible to all- With no guarantee of love, appreciation, or Understanding.