'Baby Doll'' Sunny Leone...

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                     India comes of age with ‘Baby Doll’ Sunny Leone…

Appropriately enough, I am writing this on All Fools’ Day! And in front of me is a copy of a popular fanzine featuring ‘Baby Doll’ Sunny Leone. It quotes her as stating, “I know that many people don’t like what I represent…” Shall we call that the understatement of the year? So… what DOES Sunny Leone represent? Bluntly put : sleaze. Sunny Leone’s extraordinary life is worth a film in itself. But right now, she is enjoying the success of her horror-erotic movie, ‘Ragini MMS 2’. I haven’t watched it so far. But going by the reviews, it is obvious Ms. Leone has a valid reason to celebrate. So does her canny producer, Ekta Kapoor. For those coming in late, Sunny Leone ( real name Karenjit kaur Vohra, born in 1981), an established adult film star in Canada, became known in India after she entered the Big Boss house. The publicity around her participation revolved around her chosen career –  Sunny  was identified as a ‘porn star’ . One of the hottest in the world! It is to her credit she didn’t hide her antecedents. She efficiently handled all the jibes and taunts that came her way during those early days, with dignity and poise. That Sunny was a married woman came as a surprise to puritanical critics. That her husband, Daniel Weber , was also her manager, knocked the socks off those who had already branded her easy game. So much for pre-conceived ideas and hasty judgements. I also plead guilty!

Today, when I watch Sunny going about those incredibly tedious promotional activities for her film, I marvel at her tenacity. It couldn’t have been easy getting a toehold into tightly controlled Bollywood circles for a woman who is seen as an ‘outsider’ (the annoying outsider-insider dilemma is not restricted to politics alone). Credit must be given to Ekta Kapoor as well to have the vision and guts to cast Sunny in such a pivotal role. Of course, Ekta being one of the shrewdest players in the movie business, coolly extracted  her pound of flesh ( why not?), by heavily focusing on the erotic content of  Sunny’s debut movie in all the tantalizing promos. A less daring producer might have tested the waters by casting Sunny in a multi-starrer, or by getting her to perform a sizzling ‘item song’. Characteristically enough, Ekta boldly went the whole hog and presented Sunny with a solo vehicle that – surprise, surprise – did indeed involve a bit of acting. Just a wee bit. But what the hell.The movie could easily have been a shamelessly voyeuristic sleaze fest, with heavy duty moaning and groaning and little else.But Ekta actually bothered to provide a fig leaf of a story line and projected Sunny Leone as a bona fide star.This was a master stroke – an inspired brain wave. And given the lopsided logic of the movie business, if the film is a hit, nothing else matters. Least of all the heroine’s past.

Let’s see what happens to Sunny now. She talks about shuttling between her home in L.A. and her work in Mumbai. She definitely does not talk about going back to her old job as an adult film actress. One guesses those days are over. Her manager/husband of six years is very much around, and was last seen playing Holi with the Bollywood crowd. Given the status of the Balaji banner Sunny has been launched by, she can afford to sit tight and wait for other assignments, now that her movie has been declared a commercial success. That Sunny found audience acceptance in a country like India, is again very telling. Ten years ago, someone like Sunny would have been mocked and attacked by the hypocritical film industry itself. It would only have been producers of C-Grade ‘blue’ films who would have pursued her. Today, Sunny can walk with her head held high alongside any of the other newbie actresses, and demand the same level of privileges ( a fancy vanity van to call her own). Whether or not she’ll be able to sustain her current level of success remains to be seen. But the fact that she broke through the invisible cordon that makes most of  us pre-judge persons who choose a different career path, must be acknowledged. India has sure come a long way, it must also be said. If there is space in our hearts and minds for a Sunny Leone, there is hope for us.

And yes – boo to you, Muthalik!