Do you like awards? Do you like getting emails saying you have been awarded something and you just need to submit a token fee?

I always associate awards with getting the money ,not giving it!

I am sure you have got a few of those emails too.Some of you may have even fallen for them.I might have too, except my husband /business partner gets to review stuff like this. He puts me back on the path to following the inner compass and not fall for frauds like these.

Awards are an interesting thing.I like them as much as the next person.

But not, if I have to pay to be awarded/nominated or whatever. 

Social voting is a part of many awards .But when awards entail coughing up registration fees etc,thats a problem.

In Bollywood it’s a raging topic that many famous actors never get awards.

The South Indian stars too never seem to get much recognition, even though there are many talented people there.Bengali’s still  wonder why stalwarts like Suchitra sen ,Uttam Kumar, Soumitra,Satyajit Ray, and many others hardly ever got recognition .Also why singers like Shaan with mellifluous voices get elbowed out and exploiting fresh college kids in the name of fame and fortune become a racket.

But formula movies(I like them too)with  average acting and the same storyline aging heroes and fresh from school heroines (someone’s daughter or sister) keep popping up .The problem was not that they didn’t have talent.It was just that they all looked the same in a lineup.Their acting range was strangely neanderthal too.Madhuri Dixit and Juhi light up the screen with their presence .Sridevi did too effortlessly.I am not sure many do except Dipika in some movies and Alia in a few .

Ex drug addicts/convicts/alleged murderers all get their chance at the silver screen.But clean heroes with good boy vibes seem to end up at the end of the line .Don’t study, run after mirages, and you will be a star!Thats not a dream ,that’s recipe for a nightmare.

A nightmare from which you forget to wake up.Then tragedy strikes .

A group, society,community where talent is made to feel small doesn’t survive .Without fresh new creativity the art suffers.When only if you look a certain way , or borne in a particular family determines your success, it kills genius.That craft will not survive the test of time.Merit and hard work should matter.That should be the topline and bottom line too.

But what does all this have with the writing world?

Oh it’s the same story .You pay for registration to get awards.You pay.There are awards that don’t require payment though, but those get much less publicity.Strange really .

I support paying for education, teachers, exams, books, not awards.

If you  pay and get an award ,while someone with a better body of work took a stand and didn’t pay , how does it make you feel?

You should also remember that nowadays whether an award is paid or not is easy to find out.Do the research.

For young adults thinking of going into the big bad world of media, writing, movies remember these things.

7 Strange Lessons to Learn from Awards and Bollywood

#1 Something which looks too good to be true , is just that .Not true .Do your due diligence.Check online review in sites like Quora,mouthshut , Check google with keywords like…..review /cons/ feedback.Check employee reviews at glassdoor.

You have no idea what you will find.

2) If someone sells you the Bollywood dream where you have to pay money upfront , or work against things you believe in- turn around and run. Artists and people who do the work, get paid in the real world .If you are paying to get work, you are getting taken for a ride.

3)All careers have ups and downs.You need to be strong at your fundamentals  and constantly learn , apply repeat.Thats the only way to grow.

4)Shortcuts are okay, but like in math problems you can skip the steps when you know all the steps well. Not when you are learning the steps!

5)Don’t compare yourself to others.You are unique.Your story and your journey is like no one else.That gives you special resources to tap into ,when you create.Hold on to that.

6)Stay away from drug abuse and other substance abuse .Its a creativity killer and sucks the life out of LIFE.

The peer pressure is to make you sink as low as they did.Saying no to friends is way more difficult .But if they ask you to do something which you know is wrong,they are no friend!

7)If it’s something, which you don’t want your parents or your partner to know, you need to stop and talk to them before you take the next step.

Life is too short to make all the mistakes .You really need to learn from other people’s mistakes too.

The culture of quick gratification and paying for being awarded is so not cool!

What’s your take?Let me know in the comments below .