Bollywood superstar Salman Khan bicycling in picturesque Mechuka with snow capped mountains and pristine scenery as the setting is breaking Facebook and Twitter. Flanked by Union MoS Kiren Rijiju and Chief Minister Pema Khandu, the visual is powerful and definitely making a statement of the tourism potential of Arunachal Pradesh.

With his magnanimity and worldwide fan following, Salman has given the frontier state it's two seconds of fame and people are hopeful that his visit will be a catalyst. A word of gratitude must go for the actor who unlike others we are told didn't charge a dime to come to the State. In fact Salman contributed rupees 22 lakhs from his own pocket to support the MTB Arunachal challenge. 

 

The issue of harnessing Arunachal’s untapped tourism sector has garnered attention and momentum with every passing year. State government definitely has the right intent but somehow it is  unsure of how to realise this goal. It is in this attempt that GoAP over the recent years seems to be turning to Bollywood as an ally. 

 

From Vivek Oberoi, Arjun Rampal to John Abraham--who was named the state's Brand Ambassador, have all done the formal photo ops and a tweet or two to update their followers of their whereabouts. Apart from the few noises here and there— the actors descending on Arunachal territory did little to increase footfall. While there is nothing wrong in using stars to attract tourists but no commitment comes without fat sums of money exchanging hands. Money which otherwise could be put to good use to strengthen the foundations of tourism industry. Grapevine has it that John Abraham too came at a hefty sum but other than 2-3 appearances, there is nothing that the state reaped out of this alliance. 

To be fair, how much can a Brand Ambassador do?  He or she obviously cannot sell products which simply are not marketable. 

 

The state government must focus in creating basic infrastructure ( read good roads) and banking on smart campaigns. The Ziro Music Festival has emerged as a popular event in the annual music scene with people thronging from far and wide and interestingly it never had to rely on a celebrity face. The ZMF is an example of smart marketing and owes its rise to smart use of social media.

 

Why do we need one magnanimous person as a representative to promote tourism, who by the way know nothing about the state nor its culture and bill the state handsomely?