Personal perspective: Behind the scenes at the LSAs

KARACHI:

Not every star at the Lux Style Awards (LSAs) saunters along the red carpet out front; the real stars are backstage making sure the show starts on time.

There’s always two sides to these award shows; out on the stage there is intense glamour as the spotlight is on the nominees, the awards and the beautifully dressed guests, but backstage there is an army of talented individuals who ensure that the event goes as smoothly as planned. They lurk behind the set carefully manoeuvring equipment, orchestrating a beautiful mix of lights, tweaking the audio, operating the prompter, corralling the performers, directing the cameras and managing the celebrity hosts.

Work begins months before the actual day of the event as plans are drawn up, people are hired, schedules are made and countless meetings are attended. In the months leading to the event, pre-show chaos unfolds around the offices and workplaces of all who are involved in the event. Soon enough, frayed nerves and caffeine binges become a common sight as the stress and adrenaline reach dangerous levels with D-Day right around the corner. But come the event day, camera crews, photographers, security personnel, caterers, technical staff, teleprompter operators, coordinators, organisers, cleaners, carpenters, painters, spot boys, waiters, hosts, scriptwriters and countless others all cross their fingers and hope to God that their work translates into magic to those watching the show, our very own version of the Oscars, at home. And in the end, it usually does.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 19^th,  2011.