New Delhi, Aug 01: In showbiz, you are considered only as good as your last hit. Bollywood takes the maxim further. Perhaps, that's why Vivek Oberoi's injury makes more news than Shammi Kapoor's serious condition. The week upstart Oberoi was wheeled out of the hospital, the seasoned Shammi Kapoor was taken to one – the newcomer with a leg injury and the veteran with a serious lung problem.
And the day after Oberoi was discharged this Monday, Bollywood's favourite joker Johnny Walker passed away. There were obits and there were tributes for Walker, but there was not a mention of the comedian's 'prolonged illness'.
Stardom and talent had stopped being synonymous in Bollywood long back. The Vivek Oberoi obsession is the final nail in the coffin. The first step to stardom is in the genes — the right ones. Being a star son ensures that and makes the rest of the flight easy. Like a high-profile launch pad under the right banner.
It started with the rage Hrithik Roshan became in the industry even before his debut film Kaho Na Pyar Hai was released. It continued with the Oberoi fixation unleashed before Suresh Oberoi's son made his first screen appearance in Ram Gopal Varma's Company.
But Bollywood's hottest discovery was no longer cool after Road and Dum bombed. Oberoi's next, Saathiya, managed moderate business at the box office. Despite the duds, showbiz's favourite poster boy continues with his penchant for making news – not always for the right reasons. His diatribe against Bollywood brat Salman Khan at a press conference was lapped up enthusiastically. His presence around Aishwarya Rai when she was in hospital was perfect page one picture.
Vivek played to the gallery well initially but the farce went too far at the Cannes film festival, from where he came back explaining his poodle-like behaviour. It now continues with a relentless narrative of what the actor is reading, eating and doing.
And while the circus goes on, the real stars continue to remain backstage.