Poonam Pandey Inspires Indian Cricketers or Exploits Them. Which is More Perverse?

The contrast in intensity is alarming. Given the timing of the antics of model Poonam Pandey, it is hard to imagine that inspiration is the reason behind his bold new pictures on Twitter in the name of the Indian cricketers. Can anyone stop this derision?


Some would call it the legacy left behind by the IPL and its sets of glamour girls, East European dancers turned cheerleaders. If everyone can make a living out of sport, why not use it to further one’s career? That would perhaps best describe Poonam Pandey’s exploits. After from being a relative unknown, she is apparently one of the most searched on the internet. If that is the case, perhaps more models, struggling actors and anyone in general looking for fifteen seconds of fame would do well to follow in her footsteps.

What did Poonam Pandey do? Enough to get talked and written about, which she will perhaps claim adds to her popularity although perhaps notoriety is a better word. From glam dolls doubling up as cricket commentators to those sporting a mic to cover everything else but the game, Ms. Pandey has upped the ante. One has only to see the photograph to shriek in despair to know that Poonam’s intentions are not targeted at Indian cricketers unless she is looking for a quick hook up as some of the cricketers’ reputation have been known to do when it comes to mingling.

Rather Poonam Pandey’s intentions are hopefully only at furthering her own career as it would appear by any sense and logic that her photo shoot was not going to inspire the Indian cricket team to turn their fortunes around in the England ODI series. Rather it is going to take a lot more to get the Indian cricket team back on its feet and Poonam Pandey’s antics are not one of them.

Rather the lady in question seems more interested in the best way to use cricket as a platform to get into the limelight. And rather than spend hours in the make up van for a one line comment at the end of the match or look like a dumb doll in the television studio, Pandey has found it in the quickest way possible – by offering to bare all for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 winning Indian cricket team. Naturally it did not get her the permission, but it achieved the purpose in that Poonam Pandey is now famous for no good reason as the saying goes and she continues to use the Indian cricket team to show off her assets. It has got her the offer to feature in the big Indian reality television show, Bigg Boss 5, but it is highly unlikely that Poonam Pandey will be the reason why India win. At this point, she cannot even take credit for the Indian cricket team being distracted.
 
Perhaps while everyone has a right to their own formula for success, this kind of side distraction is perhaps doing nobody else a favour. Although this may seem like an unnecessary story item that needs no further elaboration, it is necessary to address the role that women seem they can portray for a few cheap moments of attention, festering exactly the kind of gender stereotypes within the sport that makes people cringe.