Is there no room for vulnerability in fame? Babil Khan's video stirs conversation!

Babil Khan recently posted a video of him breaking down on social media and here’s how the situation brought out the good, bad and the ugly out of society yet again!

Babil Khan, who is not just popularly known for being the late legend Irrfan Khan’s son but also for his performances in Qala, Railwaymen and Log out, became a topic of controversy on social media yesterday. It all started when he posted a video of himself on Instagram stories where he was crying and clearly wasn’t in a good state of mind. In the video, he mentioned names of fellow peers from the industry which includes Ananya Panday, Siddhanth Chaturvedi, Adarsh Gourav, Raghav Juyal, and Arjun Kapoor, praising them for the work that they do. But further in the video, he also mentioned that Bollywood could be a really fake industry and people here could be rude. 

He immediately took down the video but still became a topic of conversation simply because his words were taken out of context by the media and edited in a way to make it look like he tried saying that the above mentioned names have taken away work from him and have not been on their best behaviour with him either. The next thing you know, this was constantly circulated on social media platforms of most media publications and someone's mental health immediately turned into clickbait for views. While all of this was happening, his team put out a statement where they mentioned that Babil has been rather vocal about his journey with mental health so far and this was one of his difficult days. He only and only wanted to acknowledge his peers for their contributions to Indian cinema and also requested media publications to not make this something that it’s not. 

A situation like this could have easily turned sour in a fragile industry like Bollywood but celebrities like Ananya Panday and Siddhanth Chaturvedi, who were mentioned in the video, immediately showed up for Babil. Panday reposted his statement and wrote “Only love and good energy for you Babil, always in your corner”. Chaturvedi posted a video of Babil on his story where the two shared a fun moment together. He followed it up with his own statement by saying that while he never comments on stuff that’s written on him, this one hits personal and asked media publications to stop looking for drama where there isn’t. He further added by saying that everyone here is doing their best to bring drama to our screens so maybe we should stop looking for drama off-screen as well. Raghav Juyal and Adarsh Gourav also shared the actor’s statement on their story to support him. 

It was rather heartwarming to see that in a world where actors are expected to tear each other down, we're being privy to this kind of kindness! But where there’s kindness, there will also be negativity and maybe being a famous personality is a double edged sword. Director Sai Rajesh, who worked with Babil Khan for a remake of the film ‘Baby’, demanded an apology from the actor. In his statement, the director said that he, just like all the names mentioned in the video, he also deserves respect and he is no longer going to fall for any naive acts. A disappointed Babil Khan replied saying he not only gave his all to the character he was playing, he also passed on the work that came along his way during the making of that film. He gave his soul and lived in filth just to let that character look authentic and that he would only let his work speak for him henceforth. 

It becomes increasingly difficult to introspect on this incident in all of this noise but that's precisely why it's the need of this hour. Discussions surrounding mental health need to make their way to every dinner table conversation so we're educated, aware and equipped to handle situations with less judgment and more empathy. Celebrities are public figures and hence they're expected to act perfectly in society. But they're people too. We often forget that behind their couture pieces and pap poses, they’re just like you and me. Their exposure to the nasty side of social media adds to their vulnerability and this probably isn't something many of us might be able to understand.

This left me wondering - are we no longer a world where, when we clearly see someone struggling, we create a safe space for them? Are celebrities not allowed to have bad days? Are they not allowed to vent on social media like we do without any second thought? Can peers from the same industry not be kind to one another without it being labeled a PR stunt? This incident truly makes you pause and wonder if we're really making any progress as a society when it comes to the stigma attached with mental health and how media publications cover news at all.

Hope you feel better soon, Babil! In the meantime, we'll be waiting in the wings to see you kicking ass on the big screen yet again!

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