SLOUGH, ENGLAND:

Well, well. Look who finally climbed aboard the non-smoking wagon. Well, it’s none other than the champion of romance and king of Bollywood Shah Rukh Khan, who celebrated his 59th birthday on Saturday by telling us that he gave up the habit of smoking after being a devoted slave to it for 30 years old.

Actually, that’s not quite what the man said. According to Pinkvilla, what he said at a meet-and-greet event was, “I don’t smoke anymore, guys.” This announcement was greeted with cheers and was followed by this resounding approval: “I didn’t think I would feel so out of breath again, but I do.”

Celebrity impact

You might think that SRK’s description of the consequences of his decision would inspire absolutely no one to quit, but surprisingly, Pinkvilla tells us that one fan was moved enough to declare on the spot that he too would follow his traces. – putting our new and improved cigarette-free hero between a rock and a hard place.

You can almost see the train of thought flashing through his mind. Does he give a comforting “Bravo” to this frankly sheepish fan, or does he encourage him to follow his heart? Praising SRK would force one to admit the uncomfortable truth that, without his own love of cigarettes, perhaps this easy-to-lead individual would not have been inspired to smoke in the first place. On the other hand, telling the fan to follow their heart would be hypocritical and, given said fan’s life choices, perhaps a little irresponsible.

In the end, SRK opted for a mix of both options, taking great care not to choose one side and thereby absolving himself of any guilt, real or imagined. “It’s the worst thing that after smoking for 30 years, I give the advice ‘Don’t smoke,'” he said. He insisted that he was not a “role model” (hint, hint: I may be famous even on Pluto but stop copying me) and pointed out that everyone knows that smoking is not “not good” for them (subtext: for the love of God, don’t blame me for your bad habits), and that it would be good if people could give it up and bad if they couldn’t. Stumbling to the finish line, SRK concluded with this piece of genius: “But that said, do what you want to do in your own time.” This isn’t quite the same as the explicit message: “Boys and girls, smoking is bad and I was a fool for falling under its spell for so long.” » However, in the absence of a concrete message from anyone, it will have to be done.

Glamorization of smoking

You’d think that now that we’ve reached the dying embers of 2024, there’s no need to explicitly tell people to avoid an unseemly, foul-smelling, expensive cancer stick, but you’d be amazed at how many faint at the view of Tommy Shelby and his moving smoking. Cillian Murphy may not be a smoker, but his crime boss alter ego treats cigarettes with the same diligence that divers treat oxygen tanks.

“I admit that Peaky Blinders made me want to smoke and drink, among other things,” confesses a fan on Reddit.

“This show is a nightmare for ex-addicts,” adds another Peaky Blinders fan. “I smoked for ten years and usually watch it with my ex-alcoholic friend and his drug-abusing girlfriend. At the end of each episode we get goosebumps.”

Maybe you think it’s unfair to blame Peaky Blinders for glamorizing smoking, since Tommy Shelby doesn’t exist in real life and Murphy smoked herbal cigarettes on set all the time. And perhaps, while you already have your head buried deep in the sand, you could add the fact that tobacco companies are subject to some of the harshest anti-advertising laws ever invented and their job has become even more difficult in today’s enlightened times – especially now that SRK is no longer lining his pockets.

However, tobacco companies need not fear. They may no longer be allowed to stick a cowboy with a cigarette between his fingers on a giant billboard, but they already have artists like singer Charli XCX regaling us with the highlights of being a ” kid.” According to Charli, one of the main characteristics of being a “kid” is smoking. To be clear, these are the real things, not the little plant-based things Murphy ate for his show.

“You’re that girl who’s a little messy, who loves to party and sometimes says stupid things. She’s honest, direct and a little volatile,” Charli says of the cultural beast she unleashed. Painting a clearer picture, Charli tells the BBC Sidetracked podcast that someone could have “a pack of cigarettes, a Bic lighter and a white strappy top with no bra”.

Outright rejecting the questionable fashion choices of someone in a strappy white top and no bra, let’s make it clear that Charli is not some hidden denizen of the internet who has little reach beyond a handful of followers. Charli’s cigarette-loving kid became such a cultural force that Collins Dictionary gave her word of the year.

“Brat has become one of the most spoken words of 2024,” said the Collins English Dictionary. “More than a wildly successful album, ‘brat’ is a cultural phenomenon that has resonated with people around the world, and ‘brat summer’ has established itself as an aesthetic and a way of life.”

Now, maybe you’re not going through the Collins Dictionary as thoroughly as you should, but you don’t need to read it cover to cover to understand the enhanced definition of kid. According to the BBC, Collins’ lexicographers are examining social media and other sources to determine which words should be added to their annual list of new and notable words – which is how we are now saddled with a ‘kid’ for always.

It would be unfair to solely blame Charli for the smoking resurgence, even though you might want to, as the trend has unfortunately gained traction on social media platforms. An Instagram account called Cigfluencers, which has 40,000 followers, regularly posts images of celebrities smoking, and this is where your crushes will go to die. Sabrina Carpenter, Josh Hartnett, Bella Hadid, Paul Mascal and (unsurprisingly) the Gallagher brothers all pose dashingly with a cigarette in their mouth or stuck rather carelessly between their fingers. “Sexy people keep the art of smoking and being cool alive,” the tagline reads.

With 40,000 avid followers, these social media platforms might just be the salvation tobacco companies are yearning for. As for all of us, perhaps it’s time to thank SRK in these dark and dangerous times.