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Shilpa
Shetty's Impact on Indo-UK tourism |
Considering
Bollywood film actress Shilpa Shetty's career, as
non-existent as it was after triple debacle of recent
flops, was not headed in any confirmed direction,
the situation created in a recent British television
show by a co-contestant's supposedly racist remarks,
have sure begun the thread for considering Shilpa
Shetty's impact on Indo-UK tourism all of a sudden.
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How it all began: the rewind
to the start of the Shilpa Shetty in UK story
and its impact on Indo-UK tourism
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Shilpa goes cavorting to Big Brother (not her
own, but the British reality show) and receives
a rather rude shock in the form of another show
participant, Jane Goody (who, it seems, had no
intention of living up to her name and eventually
turned out to be the Gulshan Grover or Baddy of
the entire story) after earning the dubious distinction
of earning herself and her country a bad name,
after indulging in some 'not-so-nice-name-calling'
towards Shilpa. Allegedly racist remarks, and
general air of discontent passed on to Ms Shetty
apparently did not go down too well with either
the South Indian moviestar (sans any big movie,
but loads of publicity contracts, thanks to the
immense popularity she enjoys post-Big Brother
and her winning it on a wave of public sympathy)
or the Indian Government.
However, keeping a brave front, India did make
a public statement in January that the allegations
of racist attacks on actor Shilpa Shetty in a
British television show would not impact ties
between the two countries, including the Indo-UK
tourism sector, which stands to gain a lot by
way of India having taken such a generous stand
and once again emerging as the land of immense
spirituality and magnitude of emotions.
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Effect of Shilpa
Shetty's impact on Indo-UK tourism: global interest
warmed up, Indian hospitality regains flavor, charity
and spirituality greater elements of Indian and
UK brotherhood. |
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Indian
hospitality rose to the fore with some smart aleck
(the name and we are sworn to secrecy, though the
unnamed person done his bit for tying up the Indian
tourism industry representatives in knots and gotten
much needed publicity for Indian's travel industry)
making Jane Goody an offer to cleanse her impure
and obviously uncharitable thoughts and self by
visiting Indian shores, world-acclaimed for sense
of peace, complete religious abandonment and possibility
of near-Nirvana like states upon taking to prayers,
pilgrimages, health practices like yoga and pranic
healing as well as experiencing spa therapy desi-style.
Me thinks, this is a too good to pass up offer for
any regular person so how does it in any way mean
a sense of fitting justice for the 'nastiness' Shilpa
Shetty faced?
Apparently, the offer was made to sophisticize
Indian cultural values of forgiveness and world
peace and this relaxant of an olive branch despite
Jane Goody's openly provocative and racist taunts
(though the remark about Shilpa's cooking may
not hold sufficient ground here, but well, she's
one of our own, so there!) and has worked it charm.
For, Shilpa Shetty's impact on Indo-UK tourism
sector are evidently going great guns for her
self-esteem and public image as well as for the
domestic travel and tourism industry back home
in India that is getting a lot of good reports
from foreigners doing a re-think about the core
culture of Indian heritage and charitable good
will depicted by the kindly offer!
Shilpa Shetty's impact on Indo-UK tourism can
therefore, best be felt in terms of the massive
global interest she has generated for both countries
and major tourism giants releasing advertisements
in British media asking Jane Goody to come to
India's healing shores to rid her of negative
energy. Of course, Finnance Minister P Chidambaram,
said during a joint press conference with UK Chancellor
of Exchequer Gordon Brown for launch of the India-UK
Economic and Financial Dialogue that Indo-UK ties
are unaffected while Brown said thousands of Britons
condemned this racist episode.
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