A video of Ranu Mondal
singing an old classic song of legendary Lata Mangeshkar on a railway platform
in Ranaghat (West Bengal) went viral on social media last month. Suddenly, the
woman henceforth living a nondescript life became a popular figure overnight.
So much so that a Bollywood music composer and singer, famously known for his
concern for underprivileged, decided to record a song in her voice for his
upcoming film. The video of her recording was released instantly on social
media and attracted many hits.
I saw the viral
song from railway platform and the recording video many times over. In my view,
Ranu is good at imitation but unfortunately she may not be a talented singer per
se.
Nonetheless,
sudden popularity has changed her life dramatically. She is attending TV shows
and public functions and getting lots of media coverage. But this popularity
might not be sustainable.
There are
hundreds of example where people lacking talent gained sudden stardom and faded
to oblivion in no time. Many of them could not handle this sudden boom and bust
cycle and ended as disaster. Some regressed to the path of crimes like drug
peddling, trafficking, etc. Some other suffered from depression and even
committed suicide. Few have accepted the reality and settled back in their
groove comfortably.
The phenomenon is
not limited to the field of arts and sports only. Numerous businessmen and
entrepreneurs lacking talent and sustainable ideas are also ending as disaster
after tasting their share of success.
As I mentioned
last week (see
here) a lot of new age businesses and start ups in India are mere
imitations of the successful global business models. They completely lack
innovation and sustainability. In fact the palpable idea behind most of these
businesses also appears imitation of global practice of "create and
sell".
I would refrain
from commenting on appropriateness, or otherwise, of this practice of cloning.
My only fear is that a large majority of these imitated ventures are most
likely to fail, making life miserable for the employees, the entrepreneur and
in some cases the financiers also. It is only a matter of time when there will
be no place left in the junk yard and sale of anti depressants would have risen
exponentially.
It is unfortunate
to note that our policymakers are mostly indifferent to this problem. They
urgently need to recognize that a resource starved economy like ours can hardly
afford the "start up" failure rates of developed countries. Each
failed business not only losses its own capital, it blocks the path for some
other genuine ideas also.
The worst part is
that that the reset initiated by the global financial crisis and pushed further
by demonetization, GST, IBC etc, is bringing the hordes of traditional
businesses to the junk yard every month. New businesses joining this race will
only compound the problem manifold.
In the meantime,
it would be interesting to see how Ranu Mondal handles her life when this
sudden tide of popularity recedes. The sympathizers and admirers in the
cyberspace are ruthless people always in a hurry. They would have moved many
miles forward by the time her cows return home. Expecting any help or attention
from them would be totally unreasonable.
I wish there were
specialized therapy centers dealing with cases of sudden unsustainable rise
& fall in popularity and fortune. This is a sustainable business idea that
I am throwing in for free in the wider public interest.
