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I don’t remember any time that they abused a male actor online for endorsing an alcohol brand ever; they idolized actors like Shatrughan Sinha for their alcohol endorsements.
Samantha Ruth Prabhu, who was the Telugu Film Industry’s sweetheart until her recent divorce with Naga Chaitanya, is again the target of hate for simply living her life.
From various speculations that the marriage ended because of her song “O Antava” in the pan India blockbuster movie Pushpa which didn’t go down too well with the Akkineni family to her non-interest to become a mother or the abortion rumours and more, people are quick to blame her for the divorce based on unverified reasons.
The recent reasons for the online abuse are her association with a premium alcohol brand, and her dress at the recent Critics’ Choice Awards.
The fact is that people tend to be starkly judgemental of women only because they view them as soft targets, have a moralistic stand on what women can or cannot do, and think they can get away with the abuse.
It’s amusing that people are finding fault for Samantha’s endorsement of an alcohol brand. During the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, people were queuing up in the wee hours of the morning to buy alcohol.
India is one of the fastest growing markets for alcoholic beverages worldwide because of the rapid urbanisation, a growing middle class population with increased spending power, and a stable economy.
Global celebrities have endorsed alcohol brands, and their female brand ambassadors have not faced selective outrage and flak for it. There is an increasing number of women who are consuming alcohol, but there is a stigma attached to them as opposed to male drinkers in India – we even had a Ram Gopal Varma tweeting to shame women seen at alcohol shops.
It’s true that alcohol is a double-edged sword, and there are dangerous implications for its consumption. Instead of moral policing women for drinking alcohol, the focus should be on the awareness around responsible alcohol consumption, behaviour and responsible driving, apart from regulation – which works the same way no matter what your gender!
Also, it’s unfair how people pigeonhole a woman’s worth to marriage and motherhood alone. Everything else is immaterial, especially a woman’s achievements and evolution.
Maybe that’s just it, even in Samantha’s case! Sheer rage and envy at a woman’s audacity to pave her own path and follow her ambitions at the cost of family and motherhood! So, let’s just tear her down and mock all that she does.
Before judging someone else’s life from our myopic lens, let’s pause and look at the other side of the coin as well.
Samantha Ruth Prabhu has a charitable side to her. She’s known for routinely donating to various social causes.
Samantha Ruth Prabhu co-founded Pratyusha Support in 2014, a charitable trust along with Padma Shri awardee Dr. Manjula Anagani, India’s leading laparoscopic surgeon, obstetrician, gynecologist and an infertility specialist. The team has been serving underprivileged sections, especially the most vulnerable populations of women and children suffering from life-threatening medical conditions, and sheltering the poor. They have also been organizing free medical awareness camps, check-ups, vaccination drives, blood donation camps, and surgeries.
A pet mommy to Hash and Saasha, Samantha turned to a plant-based diet during the pandemic. She advocates plant-based foods, veganism, and urban-home-farming that propagates ‘putting food on the table.’ She is an investor and the Chief Millennial Farmer of ‘Urban Kissan.’
While it’s easy to judge someone’s life from afar knowing nothing about them personally, maybe it would be better if we could use that time to do something constructive for our society instead.
First published here.
Image source: YouTube
Author, poet, and marketer, know more about Tina Sequeira here: www.thetinaedit.com read more...
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Neena was the sole caregiver of Amma and though one would think that Amma was dependent on her, Neena felt otherwise.
Neena inhaled the aroma that emanated from the pan and took a deep breath. The aroma of cumin interspersed with butter transported her back to the modest kitchen in her native village. She could picture her father standing in the kitchen wearing his white crisp kurta as he made delectable concoctions for his only daughter.
Neena grew up in a home where both her parents worked together in tandem to keep the house up and running. She had a blissful childhood in her modest two-room house. The house was small but every nook and cranny gave her memories of a lifetime. Neena’s young heart imagined that her life would follow the same cheerful course. But how wrong she was!
When she was sixteen, the catastrophic clutches of destiny snatched away her parents. They passed away in a road accident and Neena was devastated. Relatives thronged her now gloomy house and soon it was decided that she should be married off.
Women today don’t want to be in a partnership that complicates their lives further. They need an equal partner with whom they can figure out life as a team, playing by each other’s strengths.
We all are familiar with that one annoying aunty who is more interested in our marital status than in the dessert counter at a wedding. But these aunties have somehow become obsolete now. Now they are replaced by men we have in our lives. Friends, family, and even work colleagues. It’s the men who are worried about why we are not saying yes to one among their clans. What is wrong with us? Aren’t we scared of dying alone? Like them?
A recent interaction with a guy friend of mine turned sour when he lectured me about how I would regret not getting married at the right time. He lectured that every event in our lives needs to be completed within a certain timeframe set by society else we are doomed. I wasn’t angry. I was just disappointed to realize that annoying aunties are rapidly doubling in our society. And they don’t just appear at weddings or family functions anymore. They are everywhere. They are the real pandemic.
Let’s examine this a little closer.
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