The hypocrisy of Bollywood's concerns for Shweta Basu Prasad: Too little too late?

New Delhi: The duality of Bollywood lies in the fact that a National Award winning actor is driven to prostitution due to lack of work and an adult star is given a chance at acting with more mainstream Hindi film offers than she can handle. The recent case of actress Shweta Basu Prasad has highlighted the double-standards that exist in our society.

On the one hand we ogle at women in skimpy outfits dancing to songs full of sexual innuendos and on the other hand we are quick to judge an actress who admits she has been part of a prostitution racket to make a livelihood.

Ironically, her peers, the people from the film industry have now come forward to help her out - some directors have even offered her film roles - were absent when she was struggling to make a living. In her statement, Shweta mentioned that she was running out of work and hence was driven to prostitution out of desperation. The actress, who had begun her own production house and directed a documentary as well, stated that she had stopped receiving film offers and sustaining her family was becoming difficult for her.

While it's heartening to see that so many of her peers and colleagues from the film industry have come out and spoken in support of her, where were these people when Shweta needed them the most? The flood of tweets and sympathetic statements from industry veterans will not help her find work, no?

This is not the first such case. Last year actress Jiah Khan committed suicide due to apparent heartbreak and frustration over lack of film offers. Then also, film industry had mourned her death publicly ignoring the fact that perhaps it was in some way also responsible in driving her to her death. Isolation is cruel. How is it even possible for a woman of Shweta's talents to not find work?

With its incessant hero worship and protection of the old guard and old families, is the industry allowing itself to ignore new, fresh talents that wither away unwatered and unfed?

It is also important to retrospect. Maybe now, it is time to react and appreciate and take note of talent before it's too late.