Veteran actress Jaya Bachchan has often found herself at odds with the paparazzi, with several of her sharp exchanges going viral over the years. While her behaviour was earlier brushed aside due to her stature, her recent remarks—where she commented on photographers’ clothing and compared them to mice—have triggered strong backlash. Now, celebrity photographer Varinder Chawla has openly criticised her comments, calling them disrespectful and hurtful, while also pointing out what he sees as a contradiction within her own family’s media engagement.
‘All of us were hurt by her remarks’
Reacting to Jaya Bachchan’s statements, Varinder Chawla told Siddharth Kannan that the remarks deeply affected the paparazzi community. “We personally felt very bad about her remarks against my employees. All of us were hurt. There are multiple ways to express your views, but this was not the way to do it,” he said.
Varinder highlighted how several well-known celebrities have drawn boundaries with the media respectfully, without public humiliation. “Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor, Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone, Anushka Sharma and Virat Kohli — all of them invited the paparazzi for tea and politely requested us not to click their children. Till date, we have respected that request and never photographed their kids,” he said.
‘Not once have our boys misbehaved with her’
Speaking about internal discussions within the paparazzi community, Varinder revealed that many photographers considered stepping back from covering Jaya Bachchan altogether. “Many photographers discussed that if Jaya ji doesn’t want us to click her, then perhaps we should stop doing so altogether. Not as a boycott, but simply by telling her politely that we won’t click her anymore,” he said.Defending his team, he added, “Not once have our boys misbehaved with her. They always address her respectfully as ‘Jaya ji’. God knows why she appears so frustrated all the time, but this has been her nature for years.”
‘She could have handled it like Kareena did’
Varinder stressed that the situation could have been handled far more sensitively. “When people went crazy clicking Taimur, Kareena Kapoor later requested us to stop citing security concerns, and we immediately obliged. Jaya ji could have taken a similar approach,” he said.He added, “If she had issues with the language or attire of the photographers, she could have conveyed it respectfully and we would have listened.”
‘If you don’t want to be clicked, enter from the back’
Pointing out practical alternatives available to celebrities, Varinder said, “Every event has two entries — the red carpet and the back entry. If you don’t want to be clicked, quietly enter from the back. Your PR team and event organisers can easily guide you.”Questioning the logic behind her public confrontations, he added, “But if you deliberately walk the red carpet and then create a scene, it doesn’t make sense.”
‘Commenting on someone’s clothes without knowing their background is unfair’
Varinder emphasised that Jaya Bachchan’s remarks had wider implications beyond just photographers. “Many of my employees come from financially modest backgrounds. They earn very little, and from that, they manage travel, household expenses, and everything else,” he said.Adding further context, he noted, “If they were highly educated or financially privileged, they wouldn’t be working here. Commenting on someone’s clothes without knowing their background is unfair.”He went on to say, “Jaya ji must have several staff members at home who wear uniforms. But behind the scenes, who knows their financial situation or personal struggles? Her comments don’t just affect photographers but everyone working in the industry, including spot boys. It reflects how she views the common man.”
‘Even her own family invites the media’
Responding to Jaya Bachchan’s remark—‘If you have to invite paparazzi to click your pictures, then what kind of celebrity are you?’—Varinder countered, “Even in her own family, whether it’s Abhishek Bachchan or Aishwarya Rai, we are invited to cover their promotional events when their films release.”He clarified how the system works, adding, “No major star personally calls us to click pictures. We are invited by PR teams and organisers, regardless of how big or established the celebrity is.”
What Jaya Bachchan had said earlier
Earlier, while speaking to Barkha Dutt on Mojo Story, Jaya Bachchan drew a clear line between journalists and paparazzi. “My relationship with the media is fantastic. I am a product of the media. My father was a journalist, and I have immense respect for them. But my relationship with paparazzi is zero,” she said.She further added, “Who are these people? Are they trained to represent the people of this country?”Explaining her objection, she said, “Yeh jo bahar gande, tight pant pehnke, haath mein mobile leke ghoomte hain, they think that just because they have a mobile phone, they can take your picture and say whatever they want.” She concluded by questioning their credibility, “The kind of comments they pass — kahan se aate hain, kis tarah ka education hai, kya background hai? And these people will represent us? Just because they can upload content on YouTube or social media platforms?”
