Arundhati Roy

Angelina Jolie, Bono, George Clooney . . . and closer to India, Arundhati Roy, Shabana Azmi, and Amitabh Bachchan--all celebrities and activists too.

Citing these examples, a visiting Canadian expert on international affairs says the Indian government should train Bollywood actors in the art of diplomacy as they have access to international circles of wealth and power.

Andrew Cooper, an associate director at the Ontario-based think tank, Centre for International Governance Innovation, is currently in India to promote his book, Celebrity Diplomacy--a slim treatise on the new high-wattage emissaries from the film and music industry.

Taking a leaf out of the smooth interaction between high-profile activists and CEOs of top companies at the annual World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland, he said that movie stars have a “different sort of access to influential networks,” as compared to conventional diplomats.

Struck by the “soft power potential” of the Indian film industry across South Asia, West Asia and Africa, he suggested, “If [film stars] can go through some training by the government, they can be a huge asset for the country.”

In his book, he has taken note of some of the star activists in India, especially Roy, Azmi and Bachchan, but feels that the full potential of star power is still to be tapped properly.

Cooper’s interest in researching the history, impact, practice and future of “celebrity diplomacy” was triggered by the amount of ‘face time’ that two middle-aged rock stars received with heads of state at the annual G-8 summits. While Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh managed a quick ‘pull aside’ meeting with U.S. President George Bush, Irish band U2 member, Bono and rock icon Bob Geldof had long discussions with the American president on development aid and Africa.

The idea of using celebrities to endorse good causes was pioneered in the 1950s by Unicef, which selected its first goodwill ambassador entertainer Danny Kaye to pick up the Nobel peace prize on behalf of the world body in 1965. The mantle of celeb do-gooder was eventually taken over by Princess Diana promoting a worldwide ban on landmines. In contemporary times, we have a surfeit of famous names jet-setting across the world, from Jolie for refugees to Clooney for war-tired Sudanese.

“They (celebrities) do the whole public diplomacy more naturally, being used to being in the limelight and creating media events. Jolie alone has 18 public relations professionals working for her,” said Cooper.

Modern celebrities are more assertive in choosing their cause du jour and pushing the envelope in terms of solutions.

“The new generation is very impatient. They want things to happen now,” he said.
Not surprising, he noted, “there is also a lot of ego which goes with it.”

But Cooper was more impressed with the possibility of transnational foundations, backed by billionaire businesses, being able to make a solid dent for public good, rather than more traditional celebrities.

He cited the case of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which has a budget for health projects “bigger than that of World Health Organisation.” Here, Cooper said, Indian business groups have to go on a steep learning curve in terms of ambition and management of social advocacy and development projects.