Opinion: Priya Varrier's idyllic face and hint of sexuality capture nation's imagination

Priya Prakash Varrier has become the Interner's latest crush, reads the headline of national media platforms. She is creating all kinds of record on Instagram. Overnight she has managed a humungous fan following of 606 thousand. Only after American model and TV personality Kylie Jenner (806 thousand) and footballer Christiano Ronaldo (650 thousand).

Kyle and Ronaldo have spent their life creating a niche for themselves in their respective domain. But what is Varrier's claim to fame?

Some say 'cuteness', others say 'quirky'. There are still few who would brush the meteoric rise of Varrier as a 'fad' or 'simply being lucky.'

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Priya, true to her name, has become the heartthrob of the nation. Even the girls like her. A warm smile flickers over their lips as they watch the 10- seconds clip. But why is the nation hooked?

Many would argue that cutting through the mundane and morbid routine of our daily life, the expression of Priya's large black eyes is like a gust of fresh wind. It will be a cliche to claim that the viewers of mainstream media are has reached a sad state of satiety watching quibble over Kashmir, China's land and sea grabs, Pakistan's protestations, India's never-ending problems with joblessness, terrorism, and elections.

How does Priya break this monotony? What is the appeal of her act that we find so endearing? We have to remember that video comes without dialogues, it is not even enriched by exceptional acting. Just profound cuteness.

But this cuteness is not that of a Teddybear. A Teddybear is differently cute, it does not have the latent sex appeal or the hint of romance as is evident from Priya's winking and biting of lips or the way her lover swoons.

Priya is not a sex bomb; the video does not show whether she has a perfect body, the way Dimple Kapadia had in Bobby. Remember the iconic shot-the red swimming suit-clad Dimple Kapadia, walking out of the ocean, as the sun sets in the background in Saagar. Or Lakshmi's scintillating romantic scenes with Shashi Bhattacharya in Julie.

Priya's hair curly and tad unruly, her pimple-marked face, her kajal black eyes with thick eyebrows bring back memories of high-school romance. She takes us back to that junction when we are approaching adulthood but not yet an adult. She takes us on that journey where the innocence of childhood is not lost but neither has one gained the pronounced sexuality of an adult.

Priya's demeanor reminds me of Audrey Hepburn in the Roman Holiday. Childlike face, the innocence of a nymph but with a physically matured body.

This is a sure recipe for success because it can appeal to boys and men, girls and women alike. With Priya, many of us identify because she comes as wish fulfillment, a bridge to a lost time.

People who believe in the sheer force of numbers and in the maverick of the Internet will, however, have a different story to tell. The film world of Southern India is very different from that of the north. While North pays attention to only acclaimed celebrities, the South has a panache for regional heroes and heroines. Moreover, the close-knit nature of southern societies, influence their group behaviour. If some video gains popularity among a small group of people, chances are it will get viral in a short time as many other will start liking it too.

Luck is an inexplicable factor but fame is not. Though we often attribute fame to luck. Priya's climb to fame is tied to host of social and technical factors and is not enigma as we might like to think.

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)