Subhash K Jha (DNA; November 10, 2016)

Two weeks ago, we saw buddies Farhan Akhtar and Shraddha Kapoor quashing all rumours about their romantic involvement on the TV show Yaaron Ki Baraat.

While it was good to see the Rock On 2 pair celebrate their friendship in public, what was not as good was the encouragement Shradha extended to a fan who had been pursuing her relentlessly.

By her own admission, she was meeting the fan for the 17th time, this time on the sets of Sajid and Ritesh’s talk show. In a choked voice, she told us she had seen his van at her shootings, under her residential building, etc.

Instead of reprimanding the fan for stalking her, Shraddha hugged the bewildered guy and thanked him for “being so supportive”.

Stalking, in case Shraddha doesn’t know, is a serious cognisable offence. Several working women have recently lost their lives to stalkers who have turned deadly.

Perhaps the illusion of safety provided by security guards around her exempts Shraddha from the perils of stalking. But when she hugs a stalker on national television, she puts other far less privileged and protected working-women, in imminent danger from stalkers, who might think they’re doing nothing wrong. We’d urge her to not endorse socially unacceptable behaviour in an effort to appear liberal or cute.