Sweet salaries for Indian 'eye candy'
By Priyanka Bhardwaj
NEW DELHI - Many established Bollywood beauties have recently taking on a new
role - posing in skimpy outfits for international magazines. The risque photo
spreads are jacking up magazine sales and added some hefty amounts to the
bank balances of various Indian divas.
So far, the list of foreign magazines seeking open-minded Indian models
includes Vogue, Conde Nast, Harper's Bazaar, Maxim, Hello, Rolling Stone,
People, Housekeeping and Marie Claire.
Former Miss India winner Gul Panag recently posed in revealing black lingerie
on the cover of the men's magazine Maxim. She follows in the scantily clad
footsteps of sub-continental starlets such as Neha Dhupia, Amrita Arora,
Deepika Padukone, Shreya
Saran, Minissha Lamba, Mallika Sherawat, Amisha Patel, Shilpa Shetty and Soha
Ali Khan.
Needless to say, Gul Panag, like the others, worked out endlessly, stuck to a
strict diet and reduced herself to the coveted "size zero" to fit into the
perfect bikini and hot pants.
"It was not for a change in my image. I am very happy to be associated with a
certain type of work. But what is important is that people should understand
that what they see on screen and what I am, are two different persons," Gul
told the prominent website.
Some people may not understand, but they can't stop from looking. According to
industry sources, starlets, ingenues, B-movie actresses and established stars
are all profiting handsomely from an increasingly popular trend.
And it should come as no surprise the Indian actresses are a "hot pick" of
foreign magazines. After all, the domestic divas are famous for their beautiful
figures. Now, these hot bodies are making a big splash in the growing magazine
market.
Thanks to a surge in middle-income consumers, magazines featuring newly
available luxury goods - from electronic gadgets to vacation homes and
cosmetics and perfumes - have found a thriving market.
Additionally, the federal Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has recently
eased entry regulations for the news and non-news magazine genres.
"Well, apart from their popularity, it's the idea of foraying big time into the
Indian markets after the government allowed a 26% foreign direct investment
[FDI] ceiling for international magazines," said analyst Anil Khar.
Indian companies registered under the Indian Company Act of 1951 can also
publish Indian editions of foreign magazines and insert local news and local
advertisements. The new print regulations also stipulate that three-fourths of
the board of directors and all key executives and editorial staff members must
be Indians.
This new mandate offers Indian readers access to foreign magazines at cheaper
rates. There is also expectation that the FDI limit will be raised to 49%.
Ashish Bagga, chief executive officer of Living Media India Ltd, the publisher
of India Today, told Asia Times Online, "This [raising the FDI ceiling] is good
for promoters, it's good for advertisers and it's good for everybody."
According to Bagga, the step may lead to an expansion of the print media market
with more brands and titles. He predicts an increase in competition, improved
content and marketing, more readable English, and greater commercialization in
the magazine sector.
A PricewaterhouseCoopers study showed that India will soon have the
fastest-growing media and entertainment industry in the world, rising at a
compound growth rate of 18.5% per year. The forecast also claimed that the film
industry would double to US$4.4 billion between 2006 and 2011.
The International Federation of Periodical Press has estimated that magazine
advertisement revenue in India will grow by 20% in 2008, topping $300 million.
One magazine looking to create a wave is Vogue India. The stylish women's
monthly arrived in India with much fanfare and immediately began featuring
Indian beauties. The magazine is endorsed by top actress Aishwarya Rai.
Today, Vogue India retails at more than 5,500 outlets, with high sales in
metropolitan centers Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore.
To cater to international readership, Vogue India is also sold in New York,
London, Paris, Milan and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. The latest edition
has Victoria Beckham, a former Spice Girl and wife of football star David
Beckham, in a sari.
Media observers say that Vogue India has broken the usual low-cost, low-impact
rules of magazine marketing by investing in splashy billboards and eye-catching
point-of-sale displays.
Alex Kuruvilla, managing director of Conde Nast India, told rediff.com, "We
have had a remarkable year. We have established a very impressive roster of
clients that grace the covers of Vogue. All these have led to one thing -
fantastic business results in our first full year of operations."
Arjun Mehra, publisher of Vogue India, has been quoted as saying, "The past
year has seen record numbers in advertising - the highest any luxury magazine
in India has achieved."
Expanding readerships and operating budgets are boosting the prices actors
charge to appear in magazines. Still, the publishers would hardly agree to the
escalating salaries if the stars weren't worth it.
According to analysts, a fragmented entertainment market and a dearth of
marketable stars makes the few good actors more popular than ever. Big money is
being offered to lure top draws away from projects they are already signed to,
effectively pushing up market rates.
Vikas Mohan, a film magazine editor, has been quoted as saying, "Corporate
houses are spoiling the stars by offering lucrative sums of money which has
turned them more unaffordable."
The girls, however, don't seem to mind.
"I am happy when I'm offered such amounts. It makes me feel rich," said Soha
Ali, who is rumored to have received criticism from her brother, actor Saif Ali
Khan, for posing in hot pants for Maxim magazine.
This is a big step for India. Not so long ago, kissing was a controversial
issue in India's mainstream Hindi movies. An on-screen smooch was considered
akin to "going all the way" by most actresses.
Aishwarya Rai once famously refused to play a "Bond girl", in the iconic James
Bond film series, as she was uncomfortable kissing actor Pierce Brosnan. Today,
the rules have changed and Rai and many other famous actresses have locked lips
on film.
Such progressive trends have unleashed varied interpretations of India's social
sensibilities, sexuality and moral identity.
In conservative India, women still struggling for equality at all levels of
society. In this regard, Bollywood has been a major benchmark for Indian
culture. No other art form has exhibited the same capacity to shape and express
the changing landscape of modern India.
It is unclear whether the new trend of racy, glamorous magazines eager to
feature Indian women will further subvert females in India, or empower them.
Either way, the emergence of Indian "eye candy" surely means more sweet
salaries for Bollywood beauties - and magazines in India and abroad are licking
their lips.
Priyanka Bhardwaj is a New Delhi-based freelance journalist. She can be
reached at priyanka2508@yahoo.co.in.
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