Wassapp dear star!

While endorsements, appearances and merchandise sales are all grand, tech-savvy celebrities now seem to know where the money is at. What’s now trending is apps on mobile phones. From fun, addictive games to access to behind-the-scenes footage, personal celebrity apps are making millions. After Sonam Kapoor became the first Bollywood star to launch her own app, Salman Khan joined the ranks recently as he put out an app to follow him at his candid best.

In a short video launched the app, BeinginTouch on his 51st birthday, in true Sallu style he says, ‘Swagat mat karo aap humara... Hum aapka swagat karte hain... (Don’t welcome us. We welcome you)’ The app supposedly allows bhaijaan’s fans a glimpse of never-seen-before photographs with Salman directly addressing them about his personal life. Sonam Kapoor’s app is similar – it’s free and dishes out tidbits on fashion, beauty and fitness (recipes and workouts included). If that weren’t enough, it also allows live-streaming of chats with the star. Virat Kohli too launched an app with a mobile phone company to give his fans access to his fan club, enables them to live chat and has training sessions with the cricketer.

While this is a relatively new idea for celebs in India, it’s pretty mainstream in the West. Kim Kardashian West is probably ruling the game right now — her app features tutorials for her glam looks, her game, Kim Kardashian: Hollywood lets you join the titular character on red carpet adventures in Los Angeles and oh, she even has her own emoji and GIFs called Kimoji! Musicians like Shakira, Demi Lovato and Britney Spears have their own game apps, with Snoop Dogg following up with a cheesy photo editing app. Will.i.am is a serial investor in apps too and talk show host Ellen Degeneres’ party-savvy games are quite the rage. Did you know Tom Hanks has his own word processing app that mimics a typewriter or Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s has a free motivational alarm clock app. And these are just some of the apps that were trending last year in the West.

When similar content is being shared on these celebrity’s social media profiles, why then do they need an app? “An app today is an extension of the celebrity’s personality. It’s a dehumanised human, if you will,” explains Harish Bijoor, a top brand domain specialist. “It’s a property that they are building with their own content – it’s neutral of brands and is like a brand new newspaper with no ads. Monetisation is of course the end deal,” he says.