Yes, I slapped him - Govinda

Within a few minutes of the incident, the country was abuzz with the news of Govinda slapping a man on the sets of his latest film, Money Hai Toh Honey Hai.

For some time, news channels forgot the PM's visit to China or the results of the Perth Test. The newsmaker of the moment was actor-turned-MP Govinda, who had gone an extra step, apparently as punishment to the guy who tried to misbehave with female dancers on the sets of the film. Says Govinda, "Yes, I slapped him. The guy was trying to get too close to the girls. I felt that I had to take a stand." It was later known that Maharashtra Minorities Front, a local organization, has put up banners bearing the actor-turned-politician's photograph all over his constituency, urging people to inform them about Govinda's whereabouts. The people living in that area are so unhappy with their elected MP's lack of interest that they have issued a prize money of a crore to anyone who spots Govinda visiting and showing interest in his territory. And while we are yet to ascertain what the actual cause of the thappad was, Govinda has cleared his position and commented, "Opposition parties are harassing me. Little do they know that I had met Sonia Gandhi and clearly told her that I working in my own way. I strongly feel that I have not received support from the police and the government." But, of course, members of the film fraternity stand by him during such a moment of crisis. It's not a new phenomenon that public figures have given vent to their anger in public and thereby, come under public scrutiny. But aren't they all humans at the end of the day, they ask. Says actor Tanushree Dutta, "How is it possible not to have emotional outbursts? Govinda is an acclaimed actor who has been around for quite sometime and the guy must have said or acted in a really offensive way. Being public figures doesn't stop us from being humans as well!" This is corroborated by model Dipannita Sharma, who cites instances when crowds went out of their way to make things uncomfortable for her. "This happens a lot at outdoor shoots. People take advantage of someone being a public figure. Govinda must have been pushed to such a level, that it made him act the way he did. It's as if people have the right to pass snide comments and this does get unnerving at times." Model-turned-actor Aryan Vaid had faced the brunt of public and media glare after his stint at Bigg Boss and his apparent romantic link-up with Anupama Verma. "It's not very difficult to maintain your cool, especially when you know you are always in the public glare. After my exit from Bigg Boss, there were a number of occasions when I had to try my best to keep my cool and managed to. The faster one realizes that the media doesn't have anything personal against us, the better. About the Govinda incident, I have known him personally and don't think he would slap someone without the least provocation." While the question still rages on whether celebs, too, have the right to react the way they want to, the resounding slap keeps echoing.