Remember the time when spouses of Bollywood stars would only step out for occasional social affairs and to cheer for their celebrity partner at an awards function? Well, the scene has clearly changed. Better halves of celebs are now celebrities in their own right, as visibility goes. They share the same fame and attention as their star partners, thanks to paparazzi and social media. Apart from being constantly in the limelight, the celebrity spouses also enjoy massive fan followings on social media. And the trend is not limited to Bollywood stars but extends to the wives and girlfriends of cricketers as well.
Always in the spotlight
Though some star wives seem to be living a low-key life by not pursuing acting, they ensure that their spouses are in the limelight by giving sneak-peeks into their personal lives. They continuously upload pictures and videos of their celebrity partners that show them in a casual light, keeping both partners in the public eye.
Shahid Kapoor’s wife Mira Rajput leads a non-filmy life, but constantly updates netizens on the sweet nothings that take place between the two of them. In fact, more than Shahid, Mira has started making news over her beauty videos and her daily activities, and enjoys a whopping 2.4 million followers on her Instagram account.
Similarly, former Team India cricket captain MS Dhoni’s wife Sakshi Dhoni makes up for her husband’s reticence by providing information about their house and farm, their daughter Ziva and their dogs! Sakshi’s Instagram posts go viral within seconds, which keeps both her and MS in the limelight. Sakshi has 4.3 million followers on Instagram, thanks to the popularity of her cricketer spouse. In fact, one of the videos shared by Sakshi shows her husband laughingly telling her, “You use my name to increase the number of your followers.”
Celebrity social media manager Prateek Jain explains that collaboration with a famous personality is sure to get mileage. “If the spouse shares something and tags the famous partner, then they get a bigger reach. People grow curious about them and want to know more, so it is an organically driven agenda,” says Jain, and adds that because of the strong social media presence of one partner, the couple’s overall brand value increases. “And that’s why many celebrity wives promote brands through social media because they have a healthy following,” he says. Mira Kapoor has been endorsing several brands through her Instagram account and has appeared in an ad too.
Ditti Sakshi Dhoni.
Actress Hina Khan feels there is nothing wrong in creating brand value through a famous spouse. “If a person marries a celebrity, then there are already many eyes on that person even if he or she has less of a presence on social media. There are famous parents promoting their children, so what’s the problem with a partner sharing something about his or her celebrity spouse? There’s no harm in creating a self-brand through a celebrity partner because ultimately the person is your spouse. The couple will share what they want to, just like any other couple, but if something goes viral and becomes news, then it’s not their fault,” says the Hacked actress.
Working as a team
There is no doubt that there’s huge curiosity about star spouses and their lifestyle. For instance, Seema Khan, Maheep Sandhu and Bahvna Pandey of the Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives wouldn’t have made it into the show if they didn’t have celebrity spouses. Similarly, Dhanashree Verma, fiancé of Indian cricketer Yajuvendra Chahl, has 2.4 million followers and the number increased just after Chahl announced their engagement. Dhanashree keeps uploading pictures of herself with the cricketer and recently posted a series of photos with other cricketers from her UAE trip during the IPL season. She is no less a celebrity than Chahl now. Rohit Sharma’s wife Ritika Sajdeh too uploads pictures of the cricketer spending time with their daughter and doing stuff at home. Shilpa Shetty Kundra’s husband Raaj Kundra and Juhi Chawla’s husband Jay Mehta, despite being successful businessmen, never had the spotlight on them earlier, but are now followed by paparazzi mostly because of their celebrity partners. Raj Kundra frequently uploads candid pictures and memes of himself and his wife.
Celebrity image consultant Sheena Aggarwal explains this as ‘team work’. “It is necessary that the stars have to be in the news and limelight; and if the star partner is lacking in some skill, the wife can take that up. She, by uploading more personal stuff on social media, can ensure she projects her spouse as more approachable and a normal human being. It’s like team work,” says the consultant.
