Whatever happened to Poonam Pandey??

GlobalPost
The World

In case you were wondering when India was going to follow America down the Paris Hilton road of famous people that you're not exactly sure what they're famous for, here's a news flash.  It's already there.  Apart from Bollywood, which is filled with people with no talent whatsoever, now it appears good PR skills are the main key for wannabe stars, too.

Hence, whatever happened to Poonam Pandey…. Well, she's launched her own Hilton-Kardashian style career, according to the Hindustan Times, which (okay, like me) couldn't resist posting some rubbish stills from her "My Bathing Secrets" video on her "all me all the time" web site (blocked in India as of today, I think).  (Nota bene: You know what you're getting into when Google suggests "Did you mean disastrous wardrobe malfunction?")

You may recall that Pandey was the model-actress (!) who promised to strip for the Indian cricket team if the boys won the World Cup.  I sorta lost interest after that, but there's some vague memory kicking around in my head that some censor board or cultural police force or another stepped in and told her that it wasn't going to happen in our lifetime.  

Well, it didn't.  And it did.  Turns out Pandey has launched an assault on the bastion of the talentless through youtube videos and a good PR agency, I discovered through my trusty Times of India App this morning.  Not only has her "raunchy" (OK, it's pretty tame) bikini video gotten good play from TOI, some entertainment page editor even opted to pick up a glorified press release about how Youtube blocked Pandey's second video for being commercially misleading.  (Like her promise to strip?)

Here's Pandey's own response:

 "" Ohhhh my Goshhhh!!!! Youtube Removed my 2nd Trailer The ""Mirror Acts"" i guess it cant resist the Heat.. it says Video removed due to violation of Youtube's policy against spams. scams and commercially deceptive content?? But there Was nothing like that it was jusr Hotter!!! :(( as i had Told u its gonna get Hot, Hotter & Hottest … Within next 12 hrs will Share the Third Video Trailer The ""Bed Room Secrets"" (sic).""

Welcome to modern India.

Will you support The World today?

The story you just read is not locked behind a paywall because listeners and readers like you generously support our nonprofit newsroom. If you’ve been thinking about making a donation, this is the best time to do it. Your support will get our fundraiser off to a solid start and help keep our newsroom on strong footing. If you believe in our work, will you give today? We need your help now more than ever!