As the relationship between celebs and paparazzi continues to be hot and cold, the equation actor Riteish Deshmukh shares with them is noteworthy. He and his family- wife, actor Genelia Deshmukh and children, Rahyl and Riaan greet the photographers with folded hands and patiently pose for pictures. In a chat on the show The Right Angle with Sonal Kalra, Riteish opened up on why he has never refused paparazzi pictures.
“I have seen the pap culture grow. When we debuted, it was not there, whenever we would go for a function we would get clicked. But we never got clicked coming out of a restaurant or going to a flight. Right from being one or two people, to now so many of them practically chasing to clicking pictures,” he shared.
Riteish then explained that his perspective changed after he once had a conversation with a paparazzo about how much photographers actually earn.
“I just feel that the kind of effort they have to put to make money, we need to really understand that. I remember asking one pap, ‘Ek photo ke tumhe kitne milte hain? He said ‘it depends, kisi ne agar exclusive pic liya toh ₹1,000,’” the actor recalled.
That conversation, Riteish admitted, stayed with him deeply. “I realised that if his daily earning depends on pictures, and if I am able to contribute, then I do it. Till date I have never refused a pap picture. Wherever they have come, I have humbly respected them, and so have they. They have also given a certain amount of respect which, Genelia me and the kids, value,” he said.
Riteish is currently basking in the success of his latest film, Raja Shivaji, which he has directed and co-written as well apart from acting in.
