In a rather unexpected turn of events, Bollywood actress Swara Bhasker slapped a legal notice on right wing opinion forum OpIndia for their seven month old article, which had criticized her approach post the release of the controversial Sanjay Leela Bhansali flick ‘Padmaavat’.
The issue was brought up by the OpIndia editor, who issued the following tweet:-
Dear @ReallySwara, we acknowledge receipt of the legal notice for alleged defamation supposedly issued on ur behalf by a Mumbai law firm. Could u pls confirm if this has ur blessing and if this is how u stifle free speech? We will in the meantime send a formal reply to ur notice
— Nupur J Sharma (@UnSubtleDesi) September 21, 2018
So according to the tweet, Swara Bhasker has issued a legal notice to the OpIndia site, because an article had happened to malign her image in the society, and attempted to destroy her ‘hard earned reputation’.
However, the article in question had no such issue. Published in late January, the OpIndia article in question was a simple retelling of the conversation between director Vivek Agnihotri and Swara Bhasker, where the latter tried to create mountain out of a molehill by accusing him of suggesting her to be raped, when all that Vivek Agnihotri said in the tweet, was to just visit the victims of Maoist insurgency, including the rape victims, and know what a real rape victim feels like.
We are no strangers to the fact that Swara Bhasker does have some really poor comprehension skills, and who better to ask than Vivek Agnihotri. In an innocuous tweet, that merely criticized her hypocrisy for staying mum on the issue of a nun being raped and shamed by a Christian pastor, the director was not only heckled, but also unjustly accused of abusing and shaming the actress, and was subsequently forced to delete his tweet.
This is quite ironic, because Swara Bhasker treats herself as a champion of freedom of speech and expression, as reflected in the following tweets:-
So many women face abuse for simply speaking their minds. This is in solidarity with all the girls (and boys) who refuse to be silenced. May our tribe increase. Thanks @NishSwish https://t.co/qmNHskEGFy
— Swara Bhasker (@ReallySwara) June 7, 2018
Peeps! #Manmarziyaan directed by @anuragkashyap72 is a delightful fresh contemporary love story which has been ‘voluntarily censored’ by producers due to threats of vandalism.. THERE IS NOTHING OFFENSIVE IN THE FILM. Watch it tonight as Anurag told it- be4 cuts take effect! ❣️ pic.twitter.com/p0D1dEoatx
— Swara Bhasker (@ReallySwara) September 20, 2018
To the surprise of many, Swara Bhasker even managed to stand up for Shahrukh Khan when he was heckled for posting pictures of his Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations, which is a surprise, given her selective outrage on the ethnicity of the trolls criticizing the acclaimed film star:-
Muslim bigots trolling #ShahrukhKhan for celebrating #GaneshChaturthi only goes to show that their are idiots and fundos among minorities as well. We can take comfort in knowing whatever are religious differences that we are all united by stupidity..
— Swara Bhasker (@ReallySwara) September 19, 2018
However, with the current notice, it looks that Swara Bhasker really doesn’t practice what she preaches, and she literally represents hypocrisy in the worst way possible, which is quite disturbing, given that India is witnessing a major transformation in their approach to various issues around the world.
Curiously, it is these very people, whether it is Swara Bhasker or Shehla Rashid, who would howl endlessly if one of their comrades receive even a scratch from the legal authorities, denouncing that as ‘fascism’. Is the legal notice for a mere criticism by OpIndia not fascism? Isn’t the Bollywood actress resorting to the very cyber bullying she accuses BJP supporters/nationalists for?
It’s been a rather tumultuous September, where most of the so called feminist icons, ranging from Serena Williams to Sania Mirza have revealed their true colors in the nastiest fashion imaginable. As such, when Swara Bhasker joins their ranks by resorting to cyber bullying, the very word ‘feminism’ becomes a crude joke. On a bright note, we’re proud of OpIndia for not buckling down to hooliganism and maintaining their own ground. May justice prevail.
