#BigStory: Truth behind B’wood’s drugs problem

While India, along with the rest of the world, grapples with the new normal in the post-Covid era, Bollywood has had to do some purging of its own in the wake of the upheavals that have rocked the industry since last year. Sushant Singh Rajput’s sudden demise opened a can of worms. A drug angle, involving SSR’s girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty and her brother Showik cropped up, leading to their arrests. Kangana Ranaut tweeted asking B-town’s A-listers to give their blood samples for testing to clarify they were clean and not the cocaine addicts that they were made out to be. And then came a clarification tweet from Kangana, saying “99% superstars have been exposed to hard drugs and I guarantee this”. Needless to say, fuel was added to the proverbial fire. And then, a string of celebs—Deepika Padukone, Sara Ali Khan, Rakul Preet Singh—was interrogated by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) to examine their alleged involvement in drug rackets.
A little over a year later, just as the psychedelic dust was settling and Bollywood was looking forward to returning to theatres after being held at ransom by the coronavirus pandemic, a prominent star kid was arrested from a cruise ship in a drugs bust on October 2. A psychotropic blitzkrieg was released from Pandora’s box, all over again. Following a very similar pattern from a year ago, another star, Ananya Panday was summoned by the NCB, to examine her alleged involvement in a purported drugs racket. It restarted the age-old debate, does Bollywood have a drugs problem? Some folks asked the question, why are Bollywood’s young guns always caught up in a web of substance abuse? Others took a more balanced stand and said, it’s not Bollywood alone that has trysts with drugs, contraband is found in many nooks and corners, with lots of young consumers. And then there was a niche cross-section of people who asked, ‘What’s wrong in an adult using recreational drugs?’.
The truth is, Bollywood’s supposed drugs problem has always polarised its audience. In the past, we’ve had stars like Sanjay Dutt and Fardeen Khan fall on the wrong side of the law and social diktats thanks to their experiences with illegal substances. Both Sanju and Fardeen have been to rehab, they’ve mended their ways, they’ve set an example for the youth through their fallacy. But that hasn’t stopped the junta from saying, ‘star kids have a free hand at using drugs’. It’s a chasm between supporters and detractors and just like the nepotism debate, it doesn’t really have a common meeting point.
Taking these all too familiar examples of Bollywood celebrities’ run-ins with drugs and contraband, ETimes has spoken to film industry professionals as well as known counsellors about Bollywood’s persistent engagement with drugs. This week’s #BigStory talks about Bollywood and its long-lasting drug problem. Why do Bollywood’s young stars, time and again get caught on the wrong side of the psychotropic substances law? Why don’t other offenders, whether from popular industries or common intelligentsia come under the scanner of organisations like the NCB? What is the actual truth? Does Bollywood actually have a drug problem? We find out:

Blame is the name of the game

According to The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, it is estimated that 13.7 per cent of people in the arts, entertainment, and recreation industries, have used an illicit drug in the past month. But is the drug problem rampant only in the film industry?

“It is not Bollywood specific! Stockbrokers on Wall Street can’t function without cocaine. A person who had back surgery and was given pain killers for a certain period of time eventually becomes an addict and starts looking for heroin on the streets as opioids and heroin come from the same family. A certain celebrity can’t sleep without getting blackout drunk because he/she is self-medicating as they don’t know if their next film will be a hit or a flop,” points out actress Somy Ali, who after being through the same rigours of showbiz, has now dedicated her life to rescuing domestic abuse victims in the US. “The drug menace is all over and will never end. The problem is not drugs or alcohol, it is dealing with life and with reality which people can’t handle. Hence, self-medication,” she reasons.

Psychologist Dr Harish Shetty agrees with Somy when he says that the problem is not limited to the world of lights, camera, action alone. “It’s a myth that Bollywood alone is the emperor of addiction. Wrong! Hectic lifestyles are more seen in the corporate world than Bollywood. Drug consumption is widely prevalent across all groups in our country and high profile men and women are role models for the young. The ‘supply reduction’ mechanism has failed badly in the last two decades to contain availability. High visibility reflects the incompetency of the many agencies that have allowed drugs to flourish. Rave parties are very common. Substance use has no excuse. It’s a behaviour that always existed in Bollywood and the rest of the world. Years ago it was alcohol, today it’s drugs,” he says matter-of-factly.

Senior psychiatrist Dr Yusuf Matcheswalla, who headed a rehabilitation department at Masina Hospital for more than three decades says, “Even though weed is illegal, it is quite popular not just in Bollywood, but with the general public, too. A lot of people in creative professions believe that weed consumption helps elevate lateral creativity in an individual’s mind, because it helps them go into a different zone.”

Away from the arclights

The drug menace is far from being industry-specific. Subhash Ghai, who worked with Sanjay Dutt in ‘Vidhata’ found out about his drug addiction only when the film was complete. “He was indulging in drugs while I was making ‘Vidhata’ in 1981. But he had quit drugs much before the making of ‘Khalnayak’ in 1993. He was back as a hardworking professional star with me,” reminisces the filmmaker, who himself had led an anti-drug drive in the 1990s which found support from industry A-listers of the time including Amitabh Bachchan, Vinod Khanna, Jeetendra, Aamir Khan, Mithun Chakraborty, Shabana Azmi, Jackie Shroff, Padmini Kolhapure among others.

Subhash ji goes on to add how most of the civilised countries have declared this menace as a serious crime in the court of law so that they can stop this evil for the good of the people and country. “That’s why the government and its agencies and the law is dead against the spread of this menace. It is a drug war in disguise by enemies of the country to diminish the constructive potential of our youth. That’s why we the industry and its veterans support all those drives and events against the use of drugs anywhere in the country,” he reiterates.


Acknowledging the real issue

Meanwhile, child counsellor Seema Hingorrany, while sympathetic towards the plight of star kids who have grown under the public eye, also reaffirms the need for the drug menace to end. “Drug abuse has not got anything to do specifically with the celeb culture or even money. I have had a case where a child was stealing money from his widowed mother with limited means, to fuel his addiction. The problem is easy availability. Drugs are now sold outside schools; procuring it has become really easy for children. Hence, there is a need to end the menace on an immediate basis,” she urges.

The high life

While on one end, there’s no denying the need to curb the drug menace at once, on the other, there are arguments on how the Indian mythology and folklore are replete with examples of drug consumption. Pooja Bedi, who has been a part of the industry since she was a child, wonders why there is selective targeting and a separate set of rules for one section of society. “Everyone knows that sadhus smoke Marijuana. But you don’t have the NCB and media jumping onto them and slamming them into prison. The history of celebs around the world has shown that careers have not been impacted negatively unless they are unable to work as a result of it. The law must be the same for all,” she states.

The actress-author also goes on to make a strong case for legalising the use of certain recreational drugs, as is the case in some countries around the world. “Certain “drugs” like marijuana, which are known for their healing properties and used in cancer treatment, should be declassified as a drug. The point is… should some of these be legal or permissible… like alcohol which also alters brain chemistry and gives you a high,” she reasons. Certain studies have revealed that recreational drugs help revive latent creativity in individuals. But then there are hard drugs and party drugs like cocaine, LSD and MDMA which are known to cause severe addictions, too.

Hero-worship to hero-bashing

India is a country that worships its heroes, puts them on a pedestal, and expects them to be perfect in their conduct. So, while their Hollywood counterparts often stumble and come clean on their imperfect lives, Indian celebs have to tackle social media trolling, media trials, and public bashing for falling out of line.

Somy returns to share that since drug addiction is a disease just like a physical ailment, Bollywood celebrities should break the stigma by being more vocal about it. “Believe it or not, human beings are attracted to those individuals who can be vulnerable rather than those who put up a strong front,” she insists, adding, “The NCB is doing its job, but they are using the wrong people to score big points in their game, depicting how well they are doing with the war on drugs. If they were to focus on an average person, a non-celebrity, it would not give them the publicity they are seeking, hence it’s a complete facade. This is where they screw up. Ideally, it should not matter whether it’s Aryan, Ananya, or some Shakuntula bai, who is tired of getting beaten up by her husband, smoking marijuana to sustain some semblance of sanity. Who cares? As long as it is not endangering their lives or others. Primarily, it should not be hard drugs which can easily lead to addiction and there is no turning back from that lifestyle”.

Pooja seconds that opinion, adding, “The size of the drug trade makes it evident that Bollywood consumption is just a speck in comparison. All addictions—be it alcohol, drugs, tobacco, sugar, fast food—are individual-based, not profession-based. Anti-celebrity public reactions only show a mindset that’s focused on creating a divide, because do the same people feel as strongly about sadhus who smoke marijuana? That itself shows the issue isn’t drugs… but a need to damn and criticise soft targets.”

Reform, don’t punish

The Aryan Khan case has raised questions on whether there’s a need to punish drug abusers by putting them behind bars with other hardened criminals, or sending them to rehab to tackle and overcome their addictions. Dr Shetty reveals that celebs are much more honest about their issues now than before. “A lot of them seek help more than yesteryear’s actors, albeit secretly. The help-seeking behaviour for drug use and mental illness has improved across years, more so, in the last one-and-a-half decade. Rehab is not necessary for consumption of cannabis, as largely this substance does not cause withdrawal symptoms. Actors or others on hard drugs seek counselling and treatment and it’s not true that they don’t seek help. This does not happen under the glare of the media.”

Somy also sides with reformation over punishment. “We don’t know what is going on in one’s life and why that person chose to engage in drugs. We have to be more empathetic. Being accusatory should be saved for rapists, domestic violence abusers, murderers, and paedophiles, not drug users. More so people smoking marijuana. That’s ridiculous! Did we all forget the 70’s peace era?” she concludes.

A senior filmmaker, with decades of experience, spoke to ETimes on condition of anonymity. He said, “A humane approach is required for dealing with the drug problem. Rehabilitation should be the preference for all users, regardless of where they come from and what they do. By all means, have legislation, implement it, incorporate severe penalties etc. But also deal with the biological factor that contributes to the consumption of drugs. We must be compassionate towards first-time users or young users. We must be tough and crack down on sellers and those who peddle these substances to the young citizens of our country, making a business out of exploiting their vulnerability.”

Authority speaks

What better perspective on this topic than that of the NCB. In an interview with ETimes on October 4, NCB Zonal Director Sameer Wankhede, who spearheaded the investigations against Rhea and Aryan said, “When we arrest someone, the media will play it up only when the arrested person is a known face. But instead of appreciating our efforts, we get blamed for targeting popular celebs. The media only writes about the NCB when a big name is involved in our case. So everyone who looks at us, feels that we only go after big names and it looks like we’re targeting them. When that’s not the case, at all. The big names are just a very small fraction of the people we end up apprehending.”

Wankhede’s claims certainly prove the point that Bollywood is a soft target and drugs aren’t a problem exclusive to the film industry. The anonymous senior filmmaker put forth a similar point and adds, “Bollywood can come in and play a very important role here. They can educate their own lot and the world at large. As people have discovered rather late of alcohol. Alcoholism is a disease and anyone who drinks too much alcohol belongs in a category that needs to be treated. So, users of marijuana should also be able to seek a similar kind of treatment”.

Dr Matcheswalla echoes a similar sentiment and adds, “It becomes big news when someone in Bollywood is caught with it. If any common person would get caught with weed, no one will bother. But a Bollywood personality caught with it creates more attention and it gets played up on television, thereby capturing the attention of the general public, too.”

The filmmaker sums up the entire problem of perception succinctly as he says, “Today’s sensationalistic media coverage of the drug crisis, which is flowing out of ignorance and the tendency to vilify certain members of society is taking a severe toll on society. Instead of addressing the problem and scaling it down, it is compounding and adding to it”. Credit Source – https://ift.tt/3jNWgBi

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