Dubai: Meet the blogger who tells the truth in Bollywood – News

For Indian children growing up outside India, Bollywood has a different appeal. It offers an insight into the traditions and rituals that are central to the Indian way of life, but, most importantly, it shows them that there can be an element of glamor to them. Varsha Phulwani, a child of the 90s, grew up with a heady dose of Bollywood. Some of my fondest childhood memories center around our weekly movie outings to the Plaza Cinema and the Strand Cinema. I also spent hours and hours watching interviews with Bollywood celebrities. I watched every interview with Aishwarya Rai, Karan Johar and Shah Rukh Khan because I wanted to speak as clearly as them, says Varsha, who manages social media for a brand in Dubai. As a child, I even started my own magazine where I wrote articles, reviews and features on Bollywood films. I would print them out on my computer, cut and paste the pages together, and staple them into a makeshift magazine. It seems silly now, and my sister and I were the only readers, but it made me happy.

Focus on your own brand

It was her day job that made Varsha think that if she could manage social media for a brand, she could do it for herself too. This realization, combined with a lot of persuasion from her friends, led Varsha to start creating her own Bollywood-focused content. On Instagram, his handle @varzilla offers catchy and sharp takes on Bollywood news that have already been viewed millions of times. My favorite part of watching a movie is talking about it for two hours after the movie is over. Initially, I shared my thoughts on my stories for two or three years, but it was my friends who encouraged me to start posting reels that have a much bigger scope than stories. They believed (more than ever) that my content would work.

Case in point: When former Miss World and actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan walked the red carpet at Cannes, social media not only criticized her choice of outfits but also went further to claim that the actress, who continues of delivering hits and is one of the most successful Indian celebrities of all time, was past her prime because she was old. Varsha's view was different: she pointed out the aesthetic flaw of the Falguni and Shane Peacock dress and that it had nothing to do with Aishwarya's age, praising the hairstyle and of the makeup of the Queen of Cannes.

This is what sets Varshas content apart for its incisiveness and authenticity. She's not afraid to call a spade a spade. For me, being authentic comes naturally. I have a few ground rules in place to ensure I maintain respect without being filtered. I'm only talking about public statements, public outfits or public appearances by public figures, she says.

Many stars maintain a carefully curated public image, making it difficult to get a true sense of their personality. Therefore, I focus on what is publicly available about them. Maintaining respect for individuals is very important to me, as is providing [an] unfiltered opinion. The two are not mutually exclusive.

The only time Varsha didn't follow this rule was when she spoke about plastic surgery and cosmetic procedures which are rampant in Bollywood. Addressing this issue is essential because Bollywood often creates a bubble in which stars appear flawless, which can lead to ordinary people feeling bad about their appearance, says Varsha. Like I said in my video, with the right resources and money, anyone can look like a Bollywood celebrity. You're not ugly, you're just poor, that was the tagline of the video and it was my first video to go viral.

Personal attacks

However, respect is not always given to content creators when they choose to be critical. Fans of stars Varsha has sharp opinions often tend to attack her when they disagree with her views. These attacks can be quite personal and intense. For example, I was asked to comment on Shraddha Kapoors performance in You Jhooti Main Makkaar and I said that I found it weak and that she hadn't made her mark in Bollywood as strongly as she could have after more than a decade in the industry, recalls Varsha. Her fan clubs, which are among the strongest in Bollywood on social media, started attacking me with hate messages, wondering how I could criticize Shraddha's performance. Engaging with such fan club leaders has always led to regrets. I approach these situations by reminding myself that behind every negative comment is a person who may be having a bad day or is simply very passionate about their favorite star.

Although social media thrives on opinionated content, it isn't always kind to the person offering those opinions. Varsha says she faced comments on her appearance, weight and accent. People can get very personal and take Bollywood very seriously. However, the beauty of cinema and art is that they are subjective; everyone has their own interpretation. What I might rate five out of 10, someone else might give it a 10 out of 10. When you give a lower rating to a movie that someone likes, they may take it personally and start attacking you .

Varsha's coping mechanism has been to focus on the positive aspects of her social media presence. Like the time one of my favorite directors, Karan Johar, commented on my reel. It was very exciting and a reminder of the reach and impact that content can have.