If the Castros are – as some Cubans refer to them – “the royal family” of the island, then Sandro Castro seems to be applying for the role of court jester.
In a country where regular access to the internet is still considered a luxury, Cuban nightclub owner Sandro Castro – a grandson to deceased leader Fidel Castro – has amassed over 150,000 followers on Instagram with outrageous and often bizarre antics that appear like an audition for an inevitable reality show about a wastrel heir to a revolutionary dynasty.
Think “One Hundred Years of Solitude” meets “Keeping up with the Kardashians.”
Unlike the rest of his intensely private, often secretive, relatives, Sandro openly seeks out fame and notoriety, even daring to troll the island’s communist-run government.
But in an exclusive late-night interview during one of the frequent blackouts roiling the island, the 33-year-old told CNN that he is misunderstood.
“I am making videos about a tense, sad situation,” Castro said referring to rising tensions between the island and the Trump administration that have further hastened Cuba’s economic collapse.
“At least I am trying to make people happy,” Castro says. “To get a smile from them. I would never make fun of a situation that I suffer from as well.”
A life of privilege in Cuba
Castro’s posts offer a rare peek into a life of privilege unimaginable to most Cubans while taking the occasional swipes at the communist apparatchiks who succeeded his grandfather, who died in 2016, and great uncle Raúl, who stood down as president in 2018.
A recent Instagram video featured an actor with bad wig askew pretending to be Donald Trump arriving on Castro’s doorstep and attempting to buy Cuba from him.
“We can do business because you are a showman and businessman like me,” the fake Trump tells the real Castro.
“You want to buy what!?” Castro responds. “Chill out!”
Poking fun at Trump’s threat to take over Cuba and the country’s worsening economic crisis would seem tone deaf if not dangerous in a nation that has warned its citizens they need to prepare for war.
It’s hard to imagine anyone not named Castro getting away with a similar stunt.
Amid an island-wide energy crisis, debate over how much Castro is really suffering as he downs chilled Cuban Cristal beers and powers his modern looking bachelor pad with an EcoFlow battery generator will likely only deepen controversy around a scion of Cuba’s most famous family. Castro claims he is not “Dubai-rich,” that his family does not own mansions or yachts and says he does not even have gas to put in his car. But in a country where the average salary is below $20 per month, Castro seems to be doing more than OK for himself. Even as Cuba’s economy collapses, on social media, for Castro and pals, the party never stops.
Source: Edition.cnn