ALMOST FAMOUS

The peddlers of dreams have arrived and have sprinkled stardust in the eyes of my friends.suddenly,a lot of people around me have started gearing up to try their luck in the various 'talent hunts' that have replaced the sob operas on television. one has got his hair streaked in rainbow colours purchased a second-hand leather jacket & donned a pair of shades because, according to him,"It's all about looking cool". I think he looks like an alien. Another is investing in a stockpile of mobile SIM cards to gifts to his/her friends so they can help him SMS his way to fame and glory.He now has enough case he doesn't make it to the big league.. And yet another is learning how to shriek hysterically with happiness, & dissolve into tears with equal rapidity,"she declares. And how about practising some singing? i ask, bewildered. Aren't the talent shows suppose to be `platforms for emerging voice of India "? They all give me a pitying look & walk away with their about -to-be famous noses in the air. And who can forget the judges, the true stars of the shows? Ranging from quarrelsome to rude, they convey a gamut of emotions Matched only by complete works of Shakespeare. clad in designer suites, they laugh, fight & stay walkouts better than our politicians in parliament. But the ones who have my full sympathy are the hapless anchors whose job profile have whittled down to announcing the names of the contestants & commercial breaks. they stand in the background, smiling vaguely contestant who breaks down into tears after strategically falling into the anchor's arms. yet, such is the lure of these shows that we all enjoy watching the mellodramma unfold in all its glitzy splendour. maybe it's because they shows ordinary people like us making it to the top. if only for a brief moment. in the end, i suppose, it is about talent. And ever since my above mentioned three friends were booted out right in the first round, my faith in the selection process has been restored.