No Stars Are Born

 

‘Koi Hero Yahaan, Koi Zero Yahaan, Koi Star Hai, Koi Bekaar Hai’ – Song Lyrics from Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani.

The word ‘Star’ has a rather metaphorical connotation. Lie stars in the sky, their earthly counterparts represent a pinnacle that people aspire to be. Be it the performing arts, sports, or the different sciences- there are people celebrated for their stellar talent and accomplishments, thus earning them the title ‘star’. From Sachin Tendulkar to C.V. Raman, and from Shah Rukh Khan to J.R.D. Tata- all of them are/were stars in their respective fields.

This blog post attempts to dig deeper into the phenomenon of stardom. Where there are stars, there are fans. The following contemplation is applicable for almost every field except politics. As someone said, the day we become a fan of a politician, we have failed in our duties as a citizen.

Take any field and name three prominent people that immediately come to mind. Very high chances that those people have been around for a long time or are even deceased with their legacy living on. That is quite natural. Becoming a prominent ‘star’ requires years, even decades of consistent effort. But what about the stars of tomorrow? That is where things get tricky.

Call it is a diffusion of opportunities or any other name, it cannot be ignored that opportunities are now restricted to a select few. The OTT era has led to the presence of actors whose names are mostly unknown. The same is true for sports- the roster in national teams and club games has increased to never before numbers. Hardly any two tournaments have the same constituent of team members. And a replacement for someone is readily available. In the Indian context, there was a time when the names of the latest Olympic medalists (and all the current members of the Cricket team) were on everyone’s tongue tips. That is not the case now. The same is true for other fields- Chetan Bhagat is not the only writer of contemporary fiction now. At one time, Bollywood had four main male singers and two main female singers. No more now.

Let us come to the sciences- be it physical, biological, or social. In many fields, the main stuff has already been discovered and whatever is being done s only incremental. Such scientists attain prominence, but it is remains restricted to others their fields. There are fields where breakthroughs happen- like Prof. Sarah Gilbert’s team inventing the Astra Zeneca Covid vaccine. But there are so many others attempting the same or something similar. Such fame is usually short-lived. How many of us can recall the names of the Nobel Prize winners of this year, forget the preceding years? In the world of business, there are superstar businessmen. But such people are usually never free from controversies. And because of the diffusion of opportunities, either direct competition, substitutes, or even a disruption of the norm is never far away.

Stardom is not going to be the same as before. The Internet has led to a democratization of human activities- things are no longer enclosed in hallowed chambers. Unlike the lyrics of the song from Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani, no one is the best- at least not for long.