MUMBAI: Move over Poonam Pandey. DJ Jenny is here! Miffed at the apathetical treatment meted out to the sport of hockey and its national players, Mumbai-based DJ Jenny D has decided to auction her pictures from a nude photo-shoot and donate the proceeds to Rajpal Singh's Asian Champions Trophy conquerors.
It all began when Hockey India announced a paltry sum of Rs 25,000 for each member of Indian team which beat Pakistan in the final in Ordos, China. "There were stories of our hockey players not being able to afford the right footwear before the final. The measly prize money was only adding insult to injury. Compare this to the way cricketers are treated. The injustice is there for all to see. It's a matter of serious concern," says Jenny.
The DJ, who is also a model and acts, will pose for the lenses in Mumbai on Saturday. She plans to conduct an online auction the following week. "A couple of portals have already approached me to buy the images. There's also an international men's magazine that has offered to pay me Rs 10 lakh for a nude cover shoot that would have just three hockey sticks in the frame," says the 24-year-old.
Comparisons with Poonam Pandey - who offered to pose in the buff if the Indian team won the World Cup - are bound to surface but Jenny doesn't think too much of it. "I have done photo shoots like this for causes like opposing the casting couch in the film industry and fighting for reservation for women, so this is not something that's inspired. Sensible people wouldn't associate me with Poonam Pandey," says Jenny, hinting at Pandey's delay in fulfilling her promise.
Aware that her method may cause a furore, Jenny says, "There are bound to be critics but when you come across injustice, you shouldn't consider detractors. People in India don't want to get out of that traditional shell. They forget we are in the 21st century."
The Times of India