Yes Mr Superstar...

Suhani Singh  April 9, 2013 | UPDATED 15:16 IST

Yes Mr Superstar

Tags: Salman Khan | Ranbir Kapoor | Vidya Balan | Reshma Shetty | Bollywood | Anirban Das Blah | Atul Kasbekar

He was a celebrity manager for only a day, but Punit (name changed) remembers that day as the most action-packed few hours of his professional life. Asked to step in at the last minute by his employer, a leading talent management agency, Punit accompanied an actor to the National Film Awards. "At one moment he would be nice and friendly and introduce me to his contemporaries," says Punit, "but at another moment his attitude would be, 'I'm a celebrity. You can't keep me waiting'." The actor told Punit off for not keeping autograph hunters at bay though he was happily entertaining them only a few minutes ago. When the actor wanted his cell phone sneaked into the venue at any cost, Punit was forced to hide it in his pants to ensure they parted on good terms. The actor and he had a laugh over it after the event.

Over the last decade or so, celebrity managers have stormed the Indian film industry, becoming so intrinsic that Bollywood superstars can scarcely function without them. Unlike the private secretaries of old-time stars who managed actors' calendars and networked with pesky reporters as well as big-ticket producers, today's twenty-or thirty-somethings advise the star on a range of issues: Which film to do, which event to attend, whose wedding to dance at, which TV show to judge, which award ceremony to perform at, and which brand to endorse. These professionals offer a unique package: They are go-to guys who can take care of every whim and hard-nosed negotiators who can squeeze a little bit extra out of every deal.

From bad boy to being human

Celebrity managers, employed with talent management agencies such as Matrix, Carving Dreams, Bling, CAA Kwan and Yash Raj Films, lurk behind their clients like shadows.They accompany them to script-reading sessions, print interviews, magazine cover shoots, and lay down non-negotiable rules that stars don't want to be seen talking about directly: Business class air travel, S-class car pick-ups, and five-star suites.

Leading the pack is Reshma Shetty, who co-founded the Matrix agency in 2002. Regarded as one of Bollywood's new iron ladies, she is best known for transforming the notoriously tardy Salman Khan into a punctual professional. "If Reshma says Salman will reach at 2 p.m., you can be rest assured he will," says a publicist. When it comes to business transactions, the buzz is that Shetty has the final word at Salman's Galaxy Apartments in Bandra. Known for her no-nonsense attitude, Shetty recently parted ways with Sanjay Dutt after he failed to adhere to the schedule she had laid out for him.

Today, the route to a star is only through a manager. Often the managers are incessantly busy, making them as difficult to contact as the actors they represent. But they do not have a job description. "You're their shrink, agony aunt, damage-control expert, problem solver, great white shark dressed as Mother Teresa or the other way around, punching bag, and sounding board," says photographer Atul Kasbekar, 47, director of Bling agency. "In between all of this you have to be a Zen monk. But ultimately, the business advice given is not based on emotion." Celebrity managers are often expected to do the impossible. "They want flight routes to far-off destinations with no stopovers, and then they want their tickets to be changed at the last minute. They don't realise that we don't own the airline," says Pia Sawhney, 35, also a director at Bling. From checking them in and out of the hotel and checking the security guards are in place to ensuring that their vanity van has reached the set, they leave no stone unturned to make sure that the actor has little to worry and complain about.

Remember, don't botch up or else

But it is business advice from celebrity managers that the stars seek and value. In the era of corporatisation, they have taken their clients beyond the world of cinema.But it is business advice from celebrity managers that the stars seek and value. In the era of corporatisation, they have taken their clients beyond the world of cinema. Anirban Das Blah, 34, managing director of CAA Kwan, says that almost 70 to 75 per cent of any top actress's annual earnings come from non-movie avenues, with advertisements leading the pack. For actors, the figure is lower, at about 50 per cent, because they take a hefty cut from box-office earnings. For being an actor's business representative, the agency takes a 10 to 20 per cent commission fee.

Patience, good organisational skills, and a strong work ethic are the basics needed to survive in the profession, says Blah. "You've to sacrifice a lot. You have to be empathetic enough about a person's needs and ensure there are no goof-ups." It's a relationship rooted in trust that often extends beyond the line of duty. Parineeti Chopra and her manager Neha Anand, 26, for example, are buddies who go out for pizza and enjoy Punjabi music blaring on the stereo as they skirt Mumbai's traffic. Neena Rao, who has been representing Sunny Deol for 16 years, is now his right hand. "Initially Sunny didnt even know my name and he was so shy that it took him six months to open up to me. But it's been too long for us now to not be concerned about each others' family," says Rao.

But with great proximity comes great power. Celebrity managers have a ringside view of their clients' lesser-known, real selves. Want a star's dirty secrets? The manager is your best source. Dinesh (name changed), who worked with a leading agency, remembers how an actor insecure about his height asked the manager not to wear heels in his presence. "I've realised the bigger the star, the cheaper they are," says Dinesh. Another manager talks about how, at the launch of a jewellery store, the organisers gave the actress two gold sets as a goodwill gesture. When one of the cases turned out to be empty, the actress waited in the car for it to be replaced.

The good, bad and ugly side of stardom

A rookie celebrity manager starts off at Rs.25,000 per month. With experience, he or she can earn about Rs.30 to 40 lakh per year. It may not be as glamorous a job as it appears from a distance, but there are perks. Jayanti Saha, a senior agent at CAA Kwan, for example, accompanied Freida Pinto to the Doha Film Festival in November 2012 and got to meet Robert De Niro in the process. "The actors are in a high-pressure job in which they are constantly judged for what they are eating, wearing and doing," says Saha, 27, who manages the accounts of Kalki Koechlin, Anurag Kashyap, Mahesh Babu and Deepika Padukone. "One must understand they're human beings who have good and bad days."

Not everyone is in agreement. Kanika (name changed) worked with Percept Talent Management for less than a year before she had enough of her clients' tantrums and idiosyncrasies. Her struggles included being woken up at 3 a.m. to book a hotel room. Another time, she had to pack dessert toppings from a buffet counter for an A-list star's children. "The actors tend to think that they own you," says Kanika. "For them, we'll always just be glorified secretaries and spot boys."

 

 

This is an answer to Guess_wh0's Being human a PR strategy thread. 👏

Even Mr Nene hired a team to revive his wife's career , this is the battle of the PR houses now!

He's often seen with her at many events.

But her PR manager is the same as quite a few other celebs