Shilpa Shetty in "The Celebrity Big Brother" TV show

Shilpa Shetty is taking part in the Big Brother TV show on Channel 4 in England. She seems to be very unpopular among the contestants who absolutely hate her.

The other lady contestants have gone to the extent of racially abusing her and calling her 'dog', 'c**t' among other profanities.

Thousands of people in the U. K. have complained to the authorities about the racial discrimination and abuse being meted out to Shilpa Shetty in the said TV show. This question was raised in the House of Commons as well.

Back home, politicians of all hues and colours have severely condemned the behaviour of the co-participants of Shilpa Shetty.

This is what Germaine Greer has to say about the whole episode -

The Guardian

"What no one seems to have quite understood is that Shilpa is a very good actress. Everyone hates her because she wants them to. She also knows that if she infuriates people enough, their innate racism will spew forth."

Further Ms Greer adds -

"The brouhaha about racism in the Big Brother house is a smoke screen that conceals what is really vicious and corrupting about CBB. Plain, everyday, common or garden bullying supplies the motive force for everything that happens in the Big Brother house. Big Brother disorients the housemates and disrupts their perceptions so that they become literally unbalanced. They have nothing to gain but their fee for enduring this destructive process, and so far three housemates have decided that if they remained in the house they stood to lose more than they had to gain. Although their behaviour seemed irrational at the time, because they were forced "greatly to find quarrel in a straw", it was actually supremely rational. So far none of the women has been that smart. Except for Shilpa. Shilpa's enjoying herself. Ladbroke's are quoting her 10/3 favourite."

No doubt Shilpa being an actress of unquestioned caliber, knows how to rouse any particular emotion in her audiences, in this case, her house-mates on the TV show. By taking on the racial abuse of her house-mates, she has succeeded in winning over not only the sympathy of us Indians but of may British people who have sent complaints to Ofcom in thousands and even directly to Channel 4.

The odds seem to favour Ms Shetty to come out the winner in the TV show.