When Media Glorify the Superficial, Real Heroes Go Unnoticed

By Sanjay Pattnayak

In India, we are no strangers to headlines that glorify the trivial and the superfluous. Politicians engage in empty rhetoric, film stars pose for cameras at staged events, cricketers are worshipped like demigods, and even criminals are given undue airtime. The national discourse, shaped largely by the media, thrives on noise rather than substance. Amidst this cacophony, genuine stories of sacrifice and service rarely find the space they deserve.

Take, for instance, the remarkable initiative of Himani Shivpuri, a veteran Bollywood actress who has quietly adopted her ancestral village, Bhatwadi, in Uttarakhand’s Rudraprayag district. Unlike publicity-hungry celebrities who descend upon rural India for a photo op and vanish soon after, Himani has committed herself to a long-term mission—reviving a village left behind by migration and neglect.

In Bhatwadi, where most young men have left for work, leaving behind women, children, and the elderly, she has already facilitated something as basic yet life-saving as ambulance services. Now, she is working with limited personal resources and small partnerships to create sustainable livelihoods. From promoting organic farming and livestock management to empowering women with skills in handicrafts and resource-based products like cow dung items, her approach is rooted in self-reliance, not dependency. She envisions Bhatwadi as a model village where tradition and self-sufficiency coexist.

And yet, how many of us have heard of this? How many prime-time debates featured her work? None. Because our media machinery finds more profit in amplifying a politician’s hollow promise, dissecting a celebrity’s airport look, or sensationalizing a scam. When noble efforts like Himani’s are overshadowed, it reflects not just poor journalism but also a collective failure to recognize what truly matters. If even a fraction of the media coverage lavished on the political class were directed towards such grassroots initiatives, India’s development narrative would shift dramatically. Villages like Bhatwadi would not remain isolated stories but would inspire replication across the country.

It is time we ask ourselves: Who deserves the spotlight—the politician cutting yet another ribbon, or the actress quietly reviving her ancestral village? The answer should be obvious, yet our newsrooms seem to think otherwise.

India does not lack heroes; it lacks the courage to celebrate them.

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