Why Bieber can & Bhansali can't
They say Bhansali's made another 'sensitive' dud. His latest offering Guzaarish is sinking at the box office. But across the Atlantic, there's a kid who's not just raking in the moolah but the applause too. Bieber fever has infected one and all. Justin Beiber's just swept the American Music awards. Plus he's always been neck and neck with the Gaga lady on YouTube hits.
What a contrast. What similarity too. The latter first. Bhansali and Bieber both represent talent. And that's where the similarity ends. The contrast's how either talent has been honed and commercialised. One's sunk it, the other's used it. Bhansali makes movies no one wants to watch, though critics sing paeans. Bieber belts songs and millions want a listen-in. Bhansali's got talent that can't be commercialised. Bieber's talent on the other hand rakes in the moolah.
Why? The reason's simple. Bhansali's too pig-headed to have commercial interests 'corrupt' his talent. That is why you hear inane stuff like, 'My films create the world where I live', from him. And so the way it is, he won't ever make money. Bieber on the other hand is humble enough to know, talent's nothing without commercial success. And so when he gets his award he thanks the late Michael Jackson and his mentor Usher, whose label by the way manages Bieber.
The Bhansali-Bieber lesson is a marketing one. Talent's useless until it translates into a product consumers wanna buy. And that game's played well when talent combines with Marketing acumen. Bieber at his age knows it. Bhansali for all the grey, can't get it.
Pity.
What a contrast. What similarity too. The latter first. Bhansali and Bieber both represent talent. And that's where the similarity ends. The contrast's how either talent has been honed and commercialised. One's sunk it, the other's used it. Bhansali makes movies no one wants to watch, though critics sing paeans. Bieber belts songs and millions want a listen-in. Bhansali's got talent that can't be commercialised. Bieber's talent on the other hand rakes in the moolah.
Why? The reason's simple. Bhansali's too pig-headed to have commercial interests 'corrupt' his talent. That is why you hear inane stuff like, 'My films create the world where I live', from him. And so the way it is, he won't ever make money. Bieber on the other hand is humble enough to know, talent's nothing without commercial success. And so when he gets his award he thanks the late Michael Jackson and his mentor Usher, whose label by the way manages Bieber.
The Bhansali-Bieber lesson is a marketing one. Talent's useless until it translates into a product consumers wanna buy. And that game's played well when talent combines with Marketing acumen. Bieber at his age knows it. Bhansali for all the grey, can't get it.
Pity.
Comments
When you say that talent is useless without commercial success, are you
1. Eliminating personal motivation which may or may not be linked with commercialization
2. If commercial success becomes the yardstick for measuring talent, then are they directly proportional?
3. Can you use the same standards of "success measurement" in creative fields like music/drama/arts as compared to other fields?