Uorfi Javed Just Wants Us To Follow Her

Uorfi Javed Gives Us No Choice. Really, We Must Follow Her

Love her or hate her, you just can’t ignore her, writes Swetha Ramakrishnan, of the former Bigg Boss star's new Prime Video series, Follow Kar Lo Yaar

IT’S HARD TO come up with an opening paragraph about the phenomenon that is Uorfi Javed. I’m not sure where to begin, and which direction to point towards. But — deep breath — let’s dive in (like YouTubers would say, since we’re talking about a bonafide internet superstar).

A social media personality is the best way to describe Uorfi Javed, who broke into the mainstream consciousness around 2021, after a dismal stint in Bigg Boss OTT. But her participation gave Uorfi’s socials a much needed boost, and her eclectic DIY fashion sense gained massive popularity. Her virality was inevitable, and she made sure of it by delivering controversial statement after controversial statement, along with some clutter-breaking (almost avant-garde) fashion looks, with their own Instagram-first debuts. In 2022, she was the most Googled person in India. She is now a permanent fixture in paparazzi shots and with 4.5 million followers online, Uorfi is a household name.

Not much about her initial years in showbiz is referenced in her new reality show, Follow Kar Lo Yaar, which premiered on Amazon Prime Video on 23 August. Instead, we are pulled deep into her world, right from the get-go: a world in which she’s trying to be the richest, most famous person in Indian showbiz. She’s trying to start a business that — she believes — will give her the respect she isn’t right now. She is trying to bring her family along on this wild ride, and is clearly very attached to them, despite their constant conflicts. Her goals are clear and she wears her almost arrogant ambitions on her sleeve: whether that’s owning a Range Rover, or being the richest woman in India, or being willing to wear any kind of clothes if she’s suitably financially rewarded to.

You’ve got to give her credit for that. Follow Kar Lo Yaar isn’t interested in showing us the best version of Uorfi, and neither is it trying to gloss over her life in the media and entertainment industry. There are some real moments in the show, of vulnerability, of childhood trauma, of fighting a deeply misogynistic society that is constantly telling her that her desires are wrong. From the trolling, the rape and death threats she regularly gets, to fighting an industry that doesn’t know where to slot her, the show presents us with her dark moments, but she always bounces back. Uorfi’s personality is naturally colourful, and the show never goes too deep, which is a good thing. The balance between Uorfi’s reality off-camera and the Uorfi’s “reality” on camera is well-maintained.

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I use the second “reality” in quotes for a reason. As a reality TV connoisseur, I have seen every single show out there, Indian and International, from dating reality shows to adventures ones. Uorfi is currently on two shows in India — Splitsvilla season 15 and now, her own reality show a la Keeping Up With the Kardashians. She knows how to add the masala, to give us the namak that all “reality” shows need. Come to think about it, her nine-episode series also includes scenes with Munawar Farooqui and Orry, and an interview with Sanya Malhotra that could have been the focal point of the show. But it isn’t. Uorfi is the star here and she gets that kind of treatment on the show as well.

On Splitsvilla, she plays the “mischief maker” who brings in the twists and shakes up the proceedings. Needless to say, she excels in her role and has genuine camera presence, truly elevating the episode when she comes in. She even has her own background track. On Follow Kar Lo Yaar, the camera trails behind her seamlessly as she goes through a typical day in her life (meetings, shoots, pap “spottings”, and then some family time) and also through some tough scenarios (therapy sessions, difficult interviews). She isn’t afraid to be “bold” (by conventional standards, to be clear), she isn’t afraid to call herself “greedy” in terms of wanting to be rich and successful. She isn’t afraid to talk about the work she’s gotten done on her face, or how she relies on Botox to look younger. However, in her therapy sessions, we learn she is conscious of her image, she is worried about what people are saying behind her back. She is still haunted by the moralistic judgments that shaped her rebellion at a very young age. She is worried that she won’t find love the right way, but then goes on to tell the camera, “It’s okay, I'll buy myself a boy toy if needed.” Never a dull moment on the show, I'll tell you that.

There’s an interesting track on the show about Uorfi wanting to get breast augmentation surgery. The battle of “should I” or “should I not” is well-documented, and she even puts up a poll on Instagram to understand the pulse of her audience. Her PR team and her family are not so happy with her decision — there’s even a moment when Sanya Malhotra tells her, “Trust me, you don’t want this.” But Uorfi is clear, and she says, “I have a vision of what my body will look like,” making an hourglass shape with her hands. She’s almost dogged, trying to prove to the world and people watching her that she isn’t interested in playing by anyone else’s rules.

Whether or not you’re a fan, Follow Kar Lo Yaar is easy to sit through. The episodes flow one after the other and before you know it, you’ve consumed all nine, back-to-back. This season ends with a massive shoot that Uorfi bags with Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla for an online collaboration, and you know that she’s on the cusp of something big. Love her, or hate her, you can’t ignore her. Now bring on Season 2!

Stream it on Prime Video.

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