After former model Viveka Babajee’s suicide, the glamour world is once again under scrutiny. DNA finds out if there is a fear psychosis about taking it up as a career.
Expert view
Don’t blame career for one’s lifestyle choices
First things first, no career path, not even glamour, is bad as such. Depression, insecurity, alcoholism, and drug abuse are individual problems. There’s no point blaming any particular sphere of activity. However, it’s true that people in the glamour industry are more likely to be faced with problems like loneliness as they are disconnected with commoners due to their schedule and success. Moreover, a sense of insecurity creeps in after a while. A model knows she can’t do much after turning 30. But that doesn’t mean people should not tread this career path. What we need is maturity and sensitivity. It’s also advisable to approach a psychologist. Taking help doesn't mean that one is 'mad'. One must make sure that his health — physical and mental — is not affected by career decisions. Career should never be made more important than health and relationships. Opening up to others will always help people cope with any situation in life.
—Seema Hingoranny, psychologist
Media is to blame for the stereotypes
Glamour is definitely worth pursuing as a career. The money is good and so is the fame. People working in the glamour industry are happier than the others. I have seen people struggling to make ends meet. We are much better off. There are a lot of stereotypes about our industry. People think we attain success way too early. And all that money and fame leads to drug and alcohol abuse, loneliness, depression and the like. Yes, there maybe a one-off incident but that’s not the case with the entire industry. All this happens because of the way the media portrays us. Don’t people from other spheres of life go through problems? Don’t they indulge in drug abuse and eventually end their lives?
—Tupur Chatterjee, model
Chances of making fair-weather friends
I don’t think there is any problem in pursuing glamour industry as a career. It gives a lot of exposure to money but also is demanding. So, before entering into this world one should be strong enough to handle pressure. Money attracts lots of negative traits like drugs and alcohol. Moreover, there are chances of making fairweather friends. One needs to be strong to handle different situations and people. I don’t think that in the fast-paced life, it’s difficult to find true friends. Every job profile comes with own sets of pros and cons.
—Manish Chimnani, senior research associate
Pursue only if you can deal with failure
Glamour industry is meant only for the toughest of the tough, and not for everyone. Drugs and alcohol are common feature. It is worth pursuing as a career only if one takes it seriously and is willing to cope with the failure it may bring along. Also, the shelf life of models is short that one needs to have a back-up career option. With growing competition in every field and supply being higher than demand, people have to undergo a lot of work pressure. Everyone is trying to outsmart one another to get to a particular position.
—Anandita Bakshi, management student
Suicide is no answer to life’s problems
Glamour is a part and parcel of various careers like modelling, acting and other entertainment media. It would be wrong to say that glamour industry is bad or not worth it. It should be pursued as a career because everything in life has its share of problems. We need to educate people on handling pressures. Death is not the solution to one’s problems, facing it and learning from it is what one needs to focus on. Today, most people do not even have time for themselves so to have a look at other’s problems is farfetched.
—Puja Kothari, account executive
One has to train self to work like robots
You can be a princess one day and be forgotten the next, and that is why son this career has been repeatedly defamed. So what if it’s a risky business — it’s definitely worth pursuing when you have the opportunity to turn your talent into a job that brings fame and money. Most jobs today come with great pressure; one has to face cut-throat competition, sacrifice family time and train oneself to work like robots. The solution is to strike that right balance People today have more respect for people who can find their own solutions.
—Kirti Poonia, software engineer
Can’t blame industry for personal issues
Of late, we might have seen a lot of negative aspects of the glamorous world but that doesn’t mean that one cannot pursue it as a career. One can get a lot of exposure and money. The industry also lends support to other industries like advertising, films etc. If somebody commits suicide because of loneliness and succumb to drugs etc, that is their personal issue. It can happen in any field. Personal weaknesses can’t be associated with whole industry. These days one can find drug abuse or relationship failure in almost any community.
—Vinayak Iyer, BPO employee
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