At ‘We The Women’ event in Mumbai earlier this week, Jaya Bachchan expressed her displeasure with the paparazzi as she said, “Yeh gande gande pant pehen ke, mobile leke [aa jaate hai]… They think that because they have a mobile, they can take your picture, say what they want. The kind of comments they pass!” While the senior actor’s sharp comments were deemed as “elitist” by several industry voices, the issue has now escalated further. Some of Bollywood’s paparazzi agencies are preparing to file a formal complaint with the Cine & TV Artistes’ Association (CINTAA) against the veteran actor’s remarks. They are said to be in discussions before submitting their official complaint.
Bachchan’s statements, where she questioned the background and attire of paparazzi, have left many in the community feeling demeaned, with some photo syndicates considering boycotting her. Speaking to mid-day, Manav Manglani, who runs an entertainment photo syndicate of about 20 stringers, said, “She doesn’t want to be clicked; we won’t click her. Jayaji is not someone who gets eyeballs anyway. If she is with her family and wishes to pose happily, then we may [photograph her].”
Manav Manglani and Varinder Chawla
Leading photographer Varinder Chawla, who runs an agency employing 15 stringers, told mid-day that the remarks were uncalled for. “We should have some self-respect and not cover her. Every time we have clicked her pictures, we have referred to her as Jayaji. She hasn’t been disrespected. It’s not okay for the privileged to insult those who are doing an honest day’s work. Jayaji’s comments need to be responded to and sternly so. Why couldn’t Jayaji have a conversation with us? We always listen. Ranbir [Kapoor] and Alia [Bhatt] asked us not to click Raha [their daughter], we don’t.”
Besides the complaint, the agencies, in association with CINTAA, are hoping to establish a code of conduct that addresses actors’ concerns about intrusion and safety, and paps’ concerns about mistreatment. Chawla admitted that zealous fans sometimes blend in with photographers, leading to incidents of verbal run-ins or crowding at events. The sentiment is that there is an urgent need for formal guidelines governing interactions between celebrities and photographers. “There is no unity among paps today; anyone with a camera gets clubbed with us and we get a bad name. There are fans posing as us, trying to get inappropriate with actors. Between Yogen Shah and me, we want to ensure that a meeting takes place with actors where we can discuss the issues. Earlier, we had requested Suniel Shetty sir to facilitate this,” added Chawla.
‘A lot of kids pretend to be paps, comment on celebrities’
Leading paparazzo Viral Bhayani talks about the unregulated pap culture, even as he calls out Jaya Bachchan for her statement about photographers’ clothes
Jaya Bachchan and Viral Bhayani
I like Jaya Bachchan more than I do Amitabh Bachchan because I’m like her — I’m straight-forward, I say whatever is in my heart and that sometimes gets me in trouble. Jayaji has been very sweet to me, and at times, she has snapped at me as well. You have to understand her mood. Every time I would ask her politely for a picture, she wouldn’t deny.
What she said is partially true, especially when she mentions that paps pass [disrespectful] comments. If you look at the history of paparazzi [in India], there were very few in the beginning. We had ethics and responsibility towards our work, and respected everyone. We maintained decorum. [We were mindful] about our language. Also, we weren’t loud. Patience is important in our profession. But today’s kids don’t have patience. They start screaming and get anxious when an artiste doesn’t come on time.
What has happened now is that the pap [culture] is not regulated. There are a lot of kids who just take phones and pretend to be paparazzi. In case they make a comment at a celebrity, we wouldn’t know. I’ve seen this happen outside some restaurants in Bandra. It’s awful.
Some of them click women if they are wearing short clothes. That has created a bad image of us. Paparazzi is not supposed to be running after semi-naked women. We are interested in good content and good celebrities.
We try to educate our [employees] about how to cover funerals as well. We tell them to cover it in a dignified manner. We should have a moral code, a shared sense of responsibility within the community on how to cover celebrities and events. For instance, I have a rule that nobody in my team will click selfies with celebrities. If you’re seen posing with your arm around a female celebrity, you’re out of my office.
But what I didn’t like is Jayaji speaking about someone’s poverty. Anyone can be poor. Everyone works hard. Don’t underestimate anybody. I have also risen from a poor background. We change things with our hard work and determination. You can also not comment on someone’s attire. It’s not right to make such statements on clothes or someone’s appearance. Jayaji works well on social media, but she does not like being filmed. That is her choice, and we can respect that. If at any point she feels [comfortable] with it, we’ll happily film her. There is no ban on her or her family.
As told to Priyanka Sharma
