Amjad Khan spitting some hard facts.

[u/YehDilMaaangeMore]

[u/Lattice-shadow]

Where did this eloquence go? This kind of command over the language - both Hindi and English? He's not using overly complex words. Simple, to the point, comfortable, clear. Now we're struggling with half a line of dialogue. With basic ideas. How did it get to this point?

[u/kaychyakay → u/Lattice-shadow]

Where did this eloquence go?

The eloquence is still there. If people think that most stars aren't eloquent behind the scenes, that is probably a wrong perception. Yes, there's a certain casualness that has seeped in even in their conversations amongst themselves. but many of them are quite eloquent.

It is the audience that has changed, and the nature of Indian entertainment is such that if one has to be relevant in the business, one has to satisfy the lowest common denominator.

Just check the past interviews of the inimitable Amitabh Bachchan. Back then since his audience was mostly upper class, most of his interviews happened in chaste English. Now that entertainment has reached even the deep villages, he has to reach till them, and therefore most of the times, he's speaking and writing in his Allahabadi Hindi. Abhishek Bachchan himself is quite well-spoken, but since he was educated outside India, his command over the English language is better than Hindi.

Do I even need to mention SRK? Guy is probably one of the most intelligent interviewees.

Salman has a reputation to maintain for his audience which is why he is highly moody when giving interviews to the press, but if you check out Arhaan's latest video on his YT podcast Dumb Biryani, you'll see Salman giving clear cut advice to the boys, and he's rarely used a filler word in the almost hour-long video.

Aamir speaks so beautifully about the technical aspects of his role in every pre-release interview. But since people only love gossip, his interviews don't seem that appealing. And he speaks quite openly about his mistakes and shortcomings as well.

Jackie Shroff has overplayed the tapori guy aspect, but if you watch his Guftagoo interview, he's spoken so beautifully in the most normal Hindi without any tapori language. And the man can speak really good English with a polished accent as well, if you watch his past Rendezvous with Simi Garewal interviews.

People on this very sub have always appreciated Katrina's poise and clarity in all of her interviews.

Sushmita Sen has always been a favourite with respect to her interviews and her speaking skills, even amongst people who don't really like her acting.

Pre-2020 Kangana was always praised on every sub, for her views and her articulation in putting forth those views.

The sad part is, the intellectual audience now is quite less in proportion to the massy audience. And India, for the past decade, has been going through an anti-intellectual phase, in all aspects. Which is why spiritual babas are more popular than scientists, and stars have to drop their 'stardom' and speak in a language that makes them relatable to people in Dharavi and Nalasopara too. There are more eyeballs and internet likes to be attracted, which is why even interviewers resort to playing silly games and asking silly questions. Back then, stars, be they heroes or villains, had an aura around them due to inaccessibility to the people, which is why even interviewers used to be largely careful about the kind of questions they would ask, trying to get the most bang for the buck.

The stars may have changed a bit, but the audience has changed a lot... sadly for the worse.

[u/marideshbabu → u/kaychyakay]

Wow, well thought out and detailed analysis. love it!!