Kumail Nanjiani having social anxiety would rob us of the Bollywood dance scene in The Eternals. Eternals star Kumail Nanjani, Kingo, is so funny in The Eternals movie, that it’d be hard to imagine he has social anxiety. Especially, since his comical scenes are in a highly sociable environment. But if he did, there is no way in eternity that he would be as fun to watch.
Kingo, the funniest Eternal
Being a race of immortal beings, the Eternals are certainly a unique brand of hero introduced into the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Possessing superhuman powers is nothing new to the MCU but being alive for centuries and serving a celestial being is something we haven’t seen before. The Eternals are a unique story living from one ancient society to another protecting humans from their deviant counterparts. By avoiding any interference with human conflicts, these heroes are selective only to the purpose in which they were created; that is to serve the celestial, Arishem.
Living limitlessly throughout time, you can imagine that things can get a bit boring. To prevent that from happening, each Eternal went their separate ways to live their lives. Sersi, for example, became an elementary school teacher in England, while the science wizard, Phastos, became a father to a little boy in America. Out of all the Eternals however, the one who would have been most impacted by Social Anxiety Disorder is the Bollywood star, Kingo (Kumail Nanjiani). Sersi would have been the second most affected because being a schoolteacher with SAD is really difficult.
Eternally SAD…yikes!
**Although living as an Eternal would be super awesome, living as an Eternal with Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) would be far from super awesome. It would be eternally awful to live with social anxiety.
Kumail Nanjiani’s Kingo as a Movie Star in Bollywood
What does it take to be a movie star in Bollywood? Well, I don’t know because I’m not a movie star in Bollywood, or anywhere else for that matter. But I can imagine that it would be like the movie stars we see in Hollywood. Being on set with other actors, making red carpet appearances for movie premieres, and hanging out with talk show hosts in front of a nationally televised audience all seem to fit the bill of a movie star.
When we first saw Kingo as a Bollywood star, he was filming a dance scene with other men and women surrounding him. There were dancers, movie producers, cast and crew, and of course his personal valet, Karun all watching the seen unfold. The cameras were on him, his steps, his facial reactions, and his body language. Everything he was doing was being watched.
What if Kumail Nanjiani had Social Anxiety
If Kumail Nanjiani (Kingo) had Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD), he would not have been able to film a scene like that. The fear of being watched and negatively judged is too overwhelming. Kingo’s mind would have immediately jumped to the harsh criticism that people must be thinking about, leading to the dreaded Red Face symptoms of SAD. His face would have turned bright red in blush, sweat would be dripping off his face, his hands would tremble, and his heart rate would be off the charts. To make matters worse, people would have noticed and pointed out his red, sweaty face, making him blush and sweat even more. It’s really a tortuously uncomfortable feeling and therefore, Kingo would have avoided it altogether and just not filmed the dance scene.
Marvel Studios’ The Eternals, 2021
The Inner Talks of Social Anxiety Disorder
It’s important to remember that people who suffer from Social Anxiety Disorder become extremely self-conscious. They are frequently thinking about ways to prevent themselves from embarrassing themselves. There are a lot of factors that contribute to putting together a successful dance routine. That means that there are a lot of ways to look stupid and embarrass yourself. Instead of thinking about nailing the dance perfectly, someone with SAD would be thinking about ways to avoid embarrassment.
- “don’t look stupid”
- “your smile is not that nice, so stop smiling”
- “the guy dancing next to me is better than me… I suck compared to him…I suck compared to everyone”
- “the pretty girl next to me doesn’t seem impressed by me…I’m such an f-up”
Marvel Studios’ The Eternals, 2021
Being hypercritical about yourself is a well-known effect of Social Anxiety Disorder and really messes with your confidence, especially when around attractive people. Kingo could not perform an entire dance scene with so many on-lookers watching his every move. Even if he could hide the negative self-talk that goes on in his mind, he cannot hide the SAD symptoms. He could not hide the red face.