An Indian court has issued arrest warrants for Richard Gere, the Hollywood actor, and Shilpa Shetty, the Bollywood star, after he kissed her on the cheek at a public event to promote AIDS awareness.
I think the arrest order is harsh, but I don’t like to ridicule others’ culture; the world is so big and the culture and believe is so different on different side of the world.
India is not doing good international publicity for themselves though… Richard Gere was there for charity purpose, to help India to battle AIDS, and this is what he gets.
[Source: Timesonline]
April 27th, 2007 at 6:08 pm
I wouldn’t begin to guess how formal or informal the event was, but maybe he was just in a good mood, lol, who knows. A kiss on the cheek doesn’t seem to bad though and doesn’t necessarily warrant an arrest! Like you say, he was there for charity purposes, and to help India battle AIDS. I don’t like to critisize other cultures either, but I think some tolerance is in order if he didn’t mean anything bad by it. And I don’t think he did.
By the way, Richard Gere is a practicing Buddhist. I read that large groups of Hindu men burned and kicked effigies of both him and Shetty in protests across India. A group called the Shiv Sena organization burned likenesses of Gere in one of Hinduism’s holiest cities, Varanasi, and demanded that he leave the country immediately or apologise for his ‘indecent conduct’.’
April 27th, 2007 at 8:08 pm
I am not sure how strict it is in India against kissing like that in public event… but if it is enough to warrant an arrest, I guess Richard Gere should apologize indeed, for his ignorant perhaps.
I don’t think he need to do anything else other than apologize.
April 27th, 2007 at 9:34 pm
And I think that’s exactly what it was, simple ignorance. If he’d known at all that they wouldn’t approve then he probably never would have done it. I don’t think Gere would mean to cause a stir like that. He’s not a trouble maker.
At most he might come out and say that he was unaware and didn’t mean to offend in any way. I agree that he shouldn’t do anymore than that. Because other than just possibly not realizing that they would be offended, he really didnot intend to do anythinging wrong. I probably wouldn’t ever go back if I were him though. Especially after they showed that much hate and anger towards him for nothing more than an honest mistake.
April 27th, 2007 at 10:29 pm
oh yummy
wat i meant by that was me is
the annoyomous was me ! -mimie
i forgot to to write my name !
ROFL
April 27th, 2007 at 10:30 pm
Shilpa Shetty >> ddnt she won uk big brother?
i hear she`s coming to australia`s big brother.
April 27th, 2007 at 11:03 pm
-mimie… ic, got it lol.
So, Shilpa Shetty is the girl that won UK Big Brother? Not sure, never watched that show.
April 27th, 2007 at 11:03 pm
i think he was in a gr8 mood also lmao i seen nothing wroung w it lol so why is it a big problem??????????? but ya well had to come thur lol mwahs!!!!!!!!!!!
April 27th, 2007 at 11:15 pm
Brenda… as mentioned, it’s cultural difference. What you see ok at your country might not be ok in others.
April 28th, 2007 at 12:04 am
but…but… I saw the Indian Superman and the Indian Spiderwoman kiss
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f5Pjo0WjBcs
April 28th, 2007 at 6:12 am
The media in the West is spreading misinformation - ” India sues Gere”. It’s a small town judge in a very large country. They are not reporting how this Judge has been slammed by the legal community in India. Chill guys. In a country of about a billion people and hundreds of towns and cities a few dozen rascals go out burning effigies on the streets of no more than four towns and the Guardian screams ‘ The Kiss that Shocked India ‘ or Jon Stewart on the Daily Show in USA- ” Protests Rock India ”. Indians including Shilpa Shetty ( the actress in question ) didn’t care much about it. And please stop asking people to respect our ‘conservative’ culture. We ain’t no Saudi Arabia. We gave the world the Kamasutra, the sculptures of Khajuraho, the raunchy Bollywood movies and the annual Kingfisher Swimsuit Calendar ( scantier clothed models than those in Victoria’s Secret’s calendar )
April 28th, 2007 at 9:35 am
lol loki… cute video.
#10… it’s how the press work, it sucks sometimes. It doesn’t change the fact though, Richard Gere is sued in India.
Btw, did anyone mention ‘conservative’ culture? Different places have different culture, it doesn’t matter if it’s conservative or modern, culture should be respected.
April 28th, 2007 at 10:18 am
Yep. mimi, you’re right, Shetty did win UK BB and she is coming to BB in Australia as a special guest [kinda like Miriam in 2004].
But regarding this article, i would have to say that while it was nice of Richard Gere to help at a charity, he could’ve been a bit more careful about being aware of socio-cultural differences especially with things such as greetings/greeting-kisses.
I guess though while Bollywood does use some exposing costumes, I hear Shetty is quite popular there and no country really likes to see their “Sweetheart” being “taken” by someone else.
It would just be like taking Lin Zhi Ling away from Taiwan or Song Hye Kyo from Korea.
April 28th, 2007 at 6:56 pm
yeyah alice.
um i hear she`s gng to gold coast for aus big brother :]
cant wait to see her !
April 29th, 2007 at 2:41 am
I think that this ordeal is blown way out of proportion. They can’t expect Richard Gere to know that kissing publicly in India is wrong.
April 29th, 2007 at 8:28 pm
sugar… the situation is a bit out of proportion, right… but as a traveller, people need to know about what is wrong in their country.
I don’t think that the situation was handled properly, but I do felt that Richard Gere need to apologize… and he did; kudos for that.
April 30th, 2007 at 3:37 am
At the same time, it can’t do a whole lot for tourism in India. If there is any. I mean, as a traveler or vacationer I’d be walking on eggshells the whole time wondering if I was gonna be arrested for who knows what. it just wouldn’t be completely comfortable.
April 30th, 2007 at 3:41 am
I’m not saying that it actually would be a problem, but a foreign traveler is going to naturally be a little uncomfortable after something ike that.
April 30th, 2007 at 10:59 am
joe… a bit perhaps, but not too much a big deal. I believe most travellers to India are going there with a sense of exploration and adventure; it’s the unknown and culture indifference that really make India a major tourist attraction these days.
May 5th, 2007 at 2:09 pm
Just look at how Richard Gere is embracing and kissing Shilpa Shetty.
In a culture where a marriage or even an affair between two different ethinic people is looked downed up, such behavior from celebrities will definately provoke frustration and anger. Moreover, he kissed her in an event dealing with AIDS, not some dance party. Time and place are the key for such behaviors. Celebrities have to be CAREFUL about how they act and present themselves at various events. Especially for an event related to AIDS, aren’t they, by kissing and hugging, promoting what they shouldn’t be?? Maybe i’m a little conservative, but I think that the Indian Court condoning them is right. Once again, culture should be respected. If you go to a country where they follow certain beliefs, you must be willing to follow those beliefs. If you don’t, you will have a rough time. That’s all I have to say about this.
May 6th, 2007 at 1:13 am
berkeleygal… I won’t argue on your points; but kissing (on the cheek) and hugging is unlikely to transfer AIDS.
May 8th, 2007 at 10:47 am
Richard Gere is not that kind of person. Its just like a peck on the cheek (unless of coz this one was a big one) - whats the big deal?!
Even if the locals had demanded a mere apology, it wouldve still been over the top but tolerable. An arrest?? - its absolutely absurd!
I cant see the harm of it. He was just being friendly and showing his enthusiasm to the locals. He was there for a charity event for God’s sake.
Wheres the gratitude and respect here?!?
She looked like she was enjoying it anyway. She welcomed his warmth and didnt seem to mind. This is just one of the little things thats not worth a drama or publicity. Let it go. Drop it,people!
Like I said, public apology wouldve been good enough.
An arrest would just draw international distance with India over such a tiny cultural misunderstanding.
I have nothing against India. In fact, I love India! I love the food, I love their culture and some of the places in India are simply breathtaking!
x
June 7th, 2007 at 9:24 am
i think the prob is not wit the kiss…but rather gere forcin on it….
June 7th, 2007 at 10:21 am
chen… Gere didn’t force it; Sherpa could push him away if she wanted to.
August 5th, 2007 at 10:56 am
hmm…maybe they didnt like that fact that an older guy was giving a kiss to a younger gal. shrugs i have no idea, but thats too bad dfor him.