Social media platform Twitter has been abuzz ever since prominent international figures like Rihanna, Greta Thunberg, Meena Harris, Mia Khalifa, Amanda Cerny and Lilly Singh have extended support towards farmers protest. They have received support and positive responses from many and even faced severe backlash and trolls from others. There have also been instances of clashes between Indian celebrities. Celebrities who have supported the Indian government through their tweets have also received wrath from a section of Twitter users.
As we have reported earlier, on Wednesday, lawyer, author and niece of US Vice President Kamala Harris, Meena Harris posted on Twitter in support for human rights for Indian farmers and called out for fighting fascism everywhere. Meera Harris received serious criticism afterwards but she said that she won’t be intimidated and silenced after facing backlash in India for supporting the farmers and posted more posts extending support.
In one of her tweets, Harris shared an image of her picture being burnt and said to imagine the situation if she lived in India. She cited the arrest of labor rights activist Nodeep Kaur in this tweet.
In another post, Harris said,“Y’all literally have headlines that say “Brave Indian men burned pictures of women who support farmers” and think that’s normal.”
In a tweet, Harris asked for creation of an album cover as a response to her being called a part of “Rihanna’s band of propagandists.”
Climate activist Greta Thunberg also received severe criticism after extending her support. Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut, called Thunberg a “spoilt brat” and claimed that she is being paid by the left lobby.
Ranaut also severely criticized international pop artist Rihanna through her tweets and stated that Rihanna was paid for her tweet on farmers protest. Indian song writer and singer Diljit Dosanjh who has been a vocal supporter of the protesting farmers, got into a feud with Ranaut on Twitter. Dosanjh released a song named “RiRi” as a token of appreciation for Rihanna after she tweeted about the farmers protest. As a response to the song, Ranaut tweeted that Dosanjh is also trying to make money and it is all a plan.
Many Indian celebrities like Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kolhi, Saina Nehwal, Lata Mangeshkar, Akshay Kumar have tweeted about showing solidarity with the country and favored the resolution of the ongoing government-farmer standoff without any external interference. They also used the hashtags, #IndiaTogether and #IndiaAgainstPropanganda.
A section of Indian celebrities have slammed the celebrities who posted in support of the government and criticized them for posting identical tweets. Bollywood actress Taapsee Pannu tweeted: “If one tweet rattles your unity, one joke rattles your faith or one show rattles your religious belief then it’s you who has to work on strengthening your value system not become ‘propaganda teacher’ for others.”
Indian film director and producer Farah Khan said that she is “disappointed with the fraternity tweeting identical tweets that make it more like a marketing gimmick.” She also said: “The only propaganda that is happening is the one being created by the ones who want anarchy in our country.”
Also Read: Delhi Police files case over a “toolkit” tweeted by Greta Thunberg
Also Read: Indian govt and celebrities react as farmers protest receives global attention
