My primary occupation has been off-late, that of being a housewife. One fed on TV channels from the Sony bouquet and the Star bouquet from Tata Sky's viewer friendly channel options that are actually not so viewer friendly at all, rather quite confusing if one sits down to attempt understanding them.
I am quite relieved this arduous task had been dealt with well before I arrived on the scene, by my husband who is immensely patient, who also went to IIT, so I would like to imagine he can be trusted to be better equipped at the permutations and combinations needed to arrive at selecting the "channel bouquet" of preference.
An overdose of reality shows and soaps have given me the false sense of actually understanding, the secret behind the entertainment industry. I have come to realize and conclude that talent is, by the way.
It takes drama to make it.
Circumstances conspired and I somehow managed to see the popular reality music contests on THREE different channels, without getting mixed up with contestants, judges and/or anchors. Oh! I even remembered who sang what in which round! After a while I realized I was watching the shows less and less for the musical talent (or lack of it?!) on display, but more and more for the gimmicks and politics on display! On display in abundance. In fact, I think they chose themes for the week's episode on the basis of what the judges, the contestants, the anchors, or better still all three could argue over, could stage walk outs on, or could abuse each other's lineage over! Fantastic!
Initially, I was shocked to see highly accomplished people from the film industry enacting fourth standard school girl fights over which singer sang best!
Then it happened. I realized this is why they were accomplished people from the film industry. It takes drama to get noticed. That is the mantra. The balance between "performance" and
"real talent"
After months of studying the popularity patterns in the entertainment industry, I would like to submit my not so scientific classification of talent types. I have noticed three types of people.
- The talented and confident to perform,
- The talented but not confident to perform,
- and lastly but not leastly (I cooked that one up..heh heh..), The not so talented but suppar confident to perform.
The third category of people, off late making all the news, is what interests me right now. Amazes me actually.
So category two, talented but not confident.
Stepping off on a philosophical tangent; Its funny how several people have an eye for other people's talents and an exceptionally advanced sense of their own shortcomings. Awfully talented, awfully capable. Also, awfully adept at not acknowledging that. Awfully talented, awfully capable. Also, awfully adept at not acknowledging that.
I don't mean to point this out as a positive trait or a negative one at that. But it is a trait that I keep wondering about and would like to think of, as a "make or break" trait.
I am quite relieved this arduous task had been dealt with well before I arrived on the scene, by my husband who is immensely patient, who also went to IIT, so I would like to imagine he can be trusted to be better equipped at the permutations and combinations needed to arrive at selecting the "channel bouquet" of preference.
An overdose of reality shows and soaps have given me the false sense of actually understanding, the secret behind the entertainment industry. I have come to realize and conclude that talent is, by the way.
It takes drama to make it.
Circumstances conspired and I somehow managed to see the popular reality music contests on THREE different channels, without getting mixed up with contestants, judges and/or anchors. Oh! I even remembered who sang what in which round! After a while I realized I was watching the shows less and less for the musical talent (or lack of it?!) on display, but more and more for the gimmicks and politics on display! On display in abundance. In fact, I think they chose themes for the week's episode on the basis of what the judges, the contestants, the anchors, or better still all three could argue over, could stage walk outs on, or could abuse each other's lineage over! Fantastic!
Initially, I was shocked to see highly accomplished people from the film industry enacting fourth standard school girl fights over which singer sang best!
Then it happened. I realized this is why they were accomplished people from the film industry. It takes drama to get noticed. That is the mantra. The balance between "performance" and
"real talent"
After months of studying the popularity patterns in the entertainment industry, I would like to submit my not so scientific classification of talent types. I have noticed three types of people.
- The talented and confident to perform,
- The talented but not confident to perform,
- and lastly but not leastly (I cooked that one up..heh heh..), The not so talented but suppar confident to perform.
The third category of people, off late making all the news, is what interests me right now. Amazes me actually.
Of course category one, comprising people with perfect balance of confidence and talent, does churn out success stories. But lets leave those out. That category deserves a blog of its own and this is not it. Ideal scenarios don't inspire criticism, sarcasm or humor.
Why are they ideal again?
So category two, talented but not confident.
Stepping off on a philosophical tangent; Its funny how several people have an eye for other people's talents and an exceptionally advanced sense of their own shortcomings. Awfully talented, awfully capable. Also, awfully adept at not acknowledging that. Awfully talented, awfully capable. Also, awfully adept at not acknowledging that.
I don't mean to point this out as a positive trait or a negative one at that. But it is a trait that I keep wondering about and would like to think of, as a "make or break" trait.
This person is a talent store house. A latent talent store house at that. Terribly good and terribly unsure at the same time. He/she will cringe and squirm and suffocate through an insufferable display of below average quality, but not breathe a word on how he or she could have also not only done the same, but done it better. This person gets buried under the weight of his/her dormant talent, his/her debate over how much is good enough. The wares never get around to making their way through the layers of self doubt, never see feedback, criticism, improvement and appreciation.
Such people sadly, are not confident enough to woo crowds, strike a chord and get noticed. In the' public vote' driven competitive scenario, these guys would have to get reeeaaally lucky.
Such people sadly, are not confident enough to woo crowds, strike a chord and get noticed. In the' public vote' driven competitive scenario, these guys would have to get reeeaaally lucky.
In contrast to category two, there is a category three of people. The not so talented but suppar confident to perform.
This person is aware of what he/she can do or at least is pretty sure of what he/she imagines can do, and is usually neutral about the immediate reaction to his/her talent. Sometimes indifferent. This category can ride the high seas of public performances, day to day life situations and such others, merely on huge levels of confidence. Brazen confidence. Enough to take center stage in front of an audience of thousands. Confidence, usually inversely proportional to talent levels.
Talent as we conventionally know it that is.
So high is their sense of belief in themselves that they convince a nation to abandon the conventional definitions of talent. My favorite examples, although beaten to death, are Himesh ji and Madam Rakhi Sawant, for I am a huge fan. A huge fan of the drama they carry with them. These are people that are not the best of singers, best of dancers, or best of lookers and are still giving their contemporaries a run for their money!
Wherever they go, there is drama, there are high TRPs and then there is prime time news. So much so, the conventional ones want to be like them now!
He who laughs loudest usually has the last laugh it seems!
Of course there have been exceptions. Mouli dave topped the list in screen presence and appeal and yet very-anticlimaxically, the quietest one of the lot was the last standing female contestant in the show.
Aneek, the drama king did go on to win the contest, reinforcing my point about the confident "performer"getting noticed.
It is truly the era of the unconventionally talented, the era of doing what it takes to get noticed, where reel life and real life overlap, where the artist itself is the show, the era of the drama queen.
Long live Rakhi Sawant!
This person is aware of what he/she can do or at least is pretty sure of what he/she imagines can do, and is usually neutral about the immediate reaction to his/her talent. Sometimes indifferent. This category can ride the high seas of public performances, day to day life situations and such others, merely on huge levels of confidence. Brazen confidence. Enough to take center stage in front of an audience of thousands. Confidence, usually inversely proportional to talent levels.
Talent as we conventionally know it that is.
So high is their sense of belief in themselves that they convince a nation to abandon the conventional definitions of talent. My favorite examples, although beaten to death, are Himesh ji and Madam Rakhi Sawant, for I am a huge fan. A huge fan of the drama they carry with them. These are people that are not the best of singers, best of dancers, or best of lookers and are still giving their contemporaries a run for their money!
Wherever they go, there is drama, there are high TRPs and then there is prime time news. So much so, the conventional ones want to be like them now!
He who laughs loudest usually has the last laugh it seems!
Of course there have been exceptions. Mouli dave topped the list in screen presence and appeal and yet very-anticlimaxically, the quietest one of the lot was the last standing female contestant in the show.
Aneek, the drama king did go on to win the contest, reinforcing my point about the confident "performer"getting noticed.
It is truly the era of the unconventionally talented, the era of doing what it takes to get noticed, where reel life and real life overlap, where the artist itself is the show, the era of the drama queen.
Long live Rakhi Sawant!
