Private lives of celebrities are no longer completely private. Well almost. Sharing of information in dollops and small doses on their respective social media accounts is almost de rigueur these days.
Take for instance, celebrities like Farhan Akhtar, Arbaaz Khan, Harshvardhan Rane, Arjun Rampal who all seem quite comfortable about sharing bits and pieces of their personal lives. Pictures with their partners and families, holidays, new relationships and even break-ups amongst other details, are open to the public gaze.
This trend is in sharp contrast to staunch denials in the past, or a refusal to talk on private affairs in public.
Actor Arbaaz Khan, who has conformed dating Giorgia Andriani but doesn’t talk about it in the public domain says, “Yeah, I am dating and there is no hiding it. Whenever I need to talk about my personal status, I will. I don’t need to answer to someone who puts a mic in my face."
The actor who was earlier married to Malaika Arora adds, “Sometimes I use social media to share my personal life with fans. For me, I want to use it for my personal pictures and I do it without thinking much,” and asserts, however, that he is no authority on whether people have started using social media for such things.
Actors Harshvardhan Rane and Kim Sharma also took the same path. While Harshvardhan only confirmed the relationship last month, their social media pictures gave their fans a peek into their personal lives.
“I left my house at age of 16 to be an actor. So, when I talk to a journalist, my first impulse is to talk about my work and I feel guilty talking about my personal life. Social media is less of work and more of personal space. With Kim and I there was nothing to hide. I am a private person and I respect Kim’s privacy. If someone has decided to follow me on social media, I give them the right to know whatever I want to share,” he feels.
Decoding what makes celebrities comfortable on social media, clinical Psychologist Pulkit Sharma says, “Fans look at celebrities very naively. They understand why a celebrity doesn’t want to talk about his relationship in a public space. They are happy seeing the posts which celebrities put,” he says. Elaborating on why celebrities choose to do this, Pulkit says, “They do it because teasing generates a lot of interest. If you announce your relationship with someone, it doesn't create curiosity. However, if you post things on social media but don’t talk about them, it would be make people wonder all the more.”
