It looks like the Indian captain, Virat Kohli is in legal trouble. A Chennai based advocate has filed a petition in the Madras High Court demanding action against Virat Kohli and another film personality, actress Tamannah. The reason being that they are promoting online gambling. The advocate has filed this case after a 19 year old committed suicide attributing his decision to his addiction to online gambling. The advocate is seeking closure of all the online gambling websites and prosecute superstars who are promoting such websites. This is a cricket related blog. I will concentrate on the merits and demerits of Kohli’s action and will not touch upon Tamannah’s credibility.
Superstars responsibility towards the society
Virat Kohli as we all know is an extremely popular cricketer. India is a country where superstars are worshipped rather than admired. The number of commercials on TV where Kohli appears or the billboards throughout the country in which Kohli promotes a lots of products is a testimony to the fact that Kohli is not just a cricket player and the Indian cricket captain but he is a brand. Kohli is not the first to be worshipped nor will he be the last. Before Kohli, Dhoni, Tendulkar and a few others were also worshipped.
The problem of worshipping the stars increased manifold after the advent of satellite television in the 1990s. This essentially means that these superstars are required to conduct themselves on and off the field in a dignified manner. Their actions are copied across the country by a lot of youngsters. Hence, they have a lot of responsibility towards the men, women and children of the country.
The legacy that these cricketers leave behind is extremely important. Not only are they required to behave responsibly but they are expected to be the perfect role model for the future generation. Probably even for the current generation too. There are so many in this country who will just follow any star’s actions which means it is all the more important for a star to be perfect in the public eye. This is especially true when it comes to public health and public finance. Stars must not promote cigarette brands or alcohol or gambling of any form.
Kohli’s on-field behaviour
Already, Kohli’s on-field behaviour is extraordinarily poor. The obscene words that he utters in every game against every opponent is a testimony to that fact. Witness his abuse of Williamson in the second test in the last series in New Zealand despite India about to lose the game in another few overs. Kohli is extremely lucky that he is the captain of a team whose board is the richest cricket board in the world. Otherwise, by now Kohli would have been banned from playing the game at the international level because of his horrendous, disgusting and horrible behaviour on the cricket field against every opponent in every form of the game.
In the present world, Kohli is the worst behaved cricketer. It is nonsense to justify his actions by stating that that is how Kohli plays. He has even surpassed the worst behaved player ever. It is naïve on our part to expect dignity from such a player and it is precisely because of that he surprised us a few years back with his backing of Mukund.
Abhinav Mukund’s unpleasant experience
A few years ago, when Abhinav made a comeback and played against Australia, a section of the countrymen commented rather unpleasantly about the colour of his skin. It was extremely cheap of those who commented about his colour. He was asked to use beauty products to improve the colour of his skin. It was racist. Certainly, Abhinav would have found such insults hard to digest. If he had felt lonely, he would not have been wrong. I do not think any other Indian cricketer had to endure such insults. It was at that point, Kohli stood up for this teammate. He vowed that he will never ever promote beauty products any longer. It was a principled stand taken by Kohli when it was least expected from him.
Gambling is banned in the country by lot of state governments
Gambling is a curse in this country. A lot of people have lost their livelihood because of gambling. Some of us have even lost their lives. The problem was so wide spread that lot of state government have banned gambling and other illegal activities.
Kohli’s responsibility
Nothing less than what he showed during the Abhinav Mukund’s episode is expected now from Kohli. He must take a pledge that he will never ever promote anything that can and will ruin the lives of so many youngsters and their families. He must realise that he is not just a cricketer but a role model who is followed religiously by a lot of people. Both young and old in this country. Kohli must also realise his responsibility towards the society and chose his commercial ventures wisely. If Kohli can do that, not only will gambling ran out of business but it will also ensure that the youngsters do not lose their way in life. It not for anyone, Kohli owes this to the millions of his fans throughout the country.
Now the question is, will Kohli stop promoting gambling businesses? Will he realise his responsibility towards the society? Kohli will do well to channel all his energy in the upcoming series about I have written a couple of blogs. Here and here.
Do you think Kohli will have to change himself? Do you think Kohli does not have any problem whatsoever?