Rivalry is a fact of life: Mahesh Bhatt

Mahesh Bhatt advises Emraan Hashmi on how to deal with stardom now that he has pole-vaulted into another league
The huge success of "Murder 2" has catapulted Emraan Hashmi to a different league in Bollywood. While that's a reason for celebration, his mentor, Mahesh Bhatt, is quick to advice him about the pitfalls of showbiz. After all, bright lights, glamour and big bucks are not the only perks that one has to deal with while on the top.
Says Bhatt, "You pray for rain, you got to deal with the mud too." On being quizzed whether Emraan was feeling down that Bhatt needed to bring up the topic of mud, the film-maker says, "I was just telling him the blunt truth of showbiz now that he has pole-vaulted into another league. Like it or not, stars are the characters in our ongoing national soap opera. Critics and journos make a living by cutting them down to size, mocking their carefully groomed images. They need to know that one slip and these jackals will tear them to shreds. Once you reach the top, you discover it's a very precarious position. Suddenly you are playing a whole new game and they don't hand out the rulebook."
Ask him where he sees Emraan in a year from now and the director says, "His climb towards the 'top' begins now." How astute does an actor need to be to remain at the top? "Rivalry is a fact of life," he admits.So, how has he dealt with rivalry while being where he is for so long? "Well, it is by demolishing myself before others do," Bhatt signs off.