Veteran actor and director Marina Khan has witnessed the evolution of stardom in Pakistan - from the tightly curated celebrity culture of the 1980s PTV era to the always-online personas of today's social media stars.
Her breakout roles in dramas such as Tanhaiyaan and Dhoop Kinare catapulted her to nationwide fame early in her career. Speaking on a recent episode of Excuse Me with Ahmad Ali Butt, Khan discussed how the dynamics of fame have shifted over the decades.
"Back then, there was an air of mystery around actors. You’d only know what we were up to if you happened to see us in public," she said. "Now, celebrities share every moment of their lives with their fans. It makes them appear more human, I think."
Stardom and secrecy
The actor observed how fans interact with celebrities now, “On Instagram, fans intensely follow the moves of these young stars. They love to know what they ate and where they went. Additionally, they are crazy about seeing you in person too.”
She thinks that stardom flourishes both online and in person, “It is kind of merged now. I guess it’s because even on Instagram, they are seeing you through a filter. So there is still some hype around in-person interactions.”
Khan was also asked, “Where do you think an artist’s personal life begins and their work ends?” To which she responded by saying, “A lot of young people today have grown up with the internet. They’re already used to sharing their lives on social media, so for them, the personal and professional often overlap quite naturally.”
Circling back to whether they should share less or not, Khan said, “The younger generation is not really losing anything by over-sharing on social media. I don’t think either one is better than the other. People were crazy about us during the PTV era and people intensely follow the celebrities of this time too. Every time these young celebrities visit malls for promotion, massive crowds show up.”
Personally, the actor maintained, “That being said, I think an actor should maintain an air of secrecy around them.”
Early fame
Recalling her days of shooting, the actor added, “On PTV, when we booked a quarter, no one was allowed to book the one next to us. That was because no one was supposed to know what we were up to. There was the notion that there should be a desire to see someone. Otherwise, if they constantly appear, they might lose their charm.”
Sharing an anecdote from the time Dhoop Kinare was hot on air, the actor recalled an incident when she accompanied Shehnaz Sheikh and a few others to a cricket match in Sharjah.
“All of a sudden all the car windows went pitch black. People had surrounded our car from all four sides. That was when it actually hit me, ‘Wow, I'm famous now’.”
Khan also reflected on what life was like before Tanhaiyaan aired:
“Most of my co-stars had already done hit TV dramas by that time. The night before the first episode went on air, Behroze Sabzwari came up to me and joked, ‘Your life is about to change tomorrow, just get ready for it.’ I laughed it off and didn’t take him seriously. Little did I know!”
Meanwhile, Butt couldn’t help but gush over the influence Marina had on him in his youth:
“All the boys in my school had a huge crush on you. Your short hair was iconic. Please take this as a compliment when I say this; you were the Hania Aamir of your time! You were the face of the youth.”
Khan graciously accepted the compliment, responding:
“It is a compliment. I have played her mother three times, so it is fair to call her my younger version. Hania is very cute too.”
When Butt observed that Khan now seemed somewhat shy in the public eye, the actor clarified:
“No, I didn’t become shy. I just woke up one day and realised I didn’t enjoy acting as much. When the TV industry got privatised I ended up disagreeing with the way things were happening. I gravitated more towards direction then. That’s probably why I moved out of the spotlight and you don’t see me as much now.”
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