Richard Gere and Big Brother winner Shilpa Shetty are now facing warrants for their arrest after Gere theatrically kissed Shetty – on the cheek but in a dramatic pose – during an AIDS awareness event in Delhi, India.

The situation made me wonder if Gere did this for the publicity, and either way, more generally, are publicity stunts an acceptable method of raising awareness for a charitable cause?

Both Gere and Shetty say the kiss was not planned, and it’s hard to get to a person’s head or figure out their motivation much beyond what they say. I suppose whether I see something that is in fact a publicity stunt as acceptable or not depends on the motivation for it, and I think it’s only fair to give serious thought to possible consequences. While he may not have predicted an arrest warrant, it would surprise me that someone who has spent as much time in India as Gere was not aware that his actions would upset people. That said, my understanding from a few different articles is that the event was directed at raising AIDS awareness among truck drivers who may be exposed to it when they frequent prostitutes. Does the context make it more or less acceptable? Had public mores already been stretched by allowing an event like this? I just don’t know.

More than one article mentions that the press attention in India has more about the kiss than about AIDS awareness or the event, so it’s hard to judge whether, even if it was a publicity stunt, it was successful. If it had raised awareness about AIDS, or brought attention to the event – would that change whether or not it was an acceptable move?

Are the current arrest warrants an appropriate application of an existing Indian law? Is the law a good one? I don’t know that it’s my place to judge on either count, even if I had the practical knowledge to do so. I doubt Gere anticipated the full impact of how this would be received and perhaps just made a poor judgment, and I’m torn between feeling he should have had some sense that his actions would offend people and feeling empathy that someone who seems to uses his celebrity to benefit charitable causes is taking extra heat for a poor choice because of that celebrity.