Farzana Patowari (PUNE TIMES; May 10, 2019)

Swara Bhasker never shies away from speaking her mind. On social media, she is one of the handful celebs who makes it a point to comment on the political and social happenings in the country. That, however, has had an effect on her life as well. In a chat with us, she explains how. Excerpts:

‘THE SOCIETY WE LIVE IN ISN’T SAFE. THAT’S WHY B-WOOD DOESN’T SPEAK UP’
Swara has been actively showing her support for the leaders she believes in during the Lok Sabha elections, but she says she doesn’t support any particular party or candidate. Instead, she’s standing behind certain causes and manifestos.

“People in this country don’t understand that we are not Americans, and we aren’t voting for our president. We are voting for the members of the parliament and we need sensible people who take sensible decisions. Putting forward candidates who are accused of heinous crimes is something I think is unacceptable,” says Swara.

Before and through the polling process, many celebs were vocal about the parties they support. Is that a sign of change, we ask Swara, to which she replies, “This is happening now, because the society wasn’t as polarised before. In these five years, everything has become very aggressive and there is a genuine feeling of intolerance. There is a feeling of shutting the other person down. It’s a reflection of the state of our political affairs.”

Many from the film fraternity have been on the opposite sides of the political debate, with a certain level of hostility brewing in the industry. Has that affected work equations? Would Swara work with someone who is on the different end of the political spectrum? These questions have a ready answer from Swara too.

She says, “I have to trust the director. Ultimately, films are a director’s vision. Now, if you will talk rubbish, making stupid statements, defame people and spread fake news, then that is not good. A normal person will say that rape is a heinous crime and wouldn’t defend it. If you do, then you are weird and I am using very soft words. If you are not trustworthy, then I don’t know what you will have in the film. As an actor, I am serving your vision and I don’t trust your vision.”

While talking about Bollywood celebs who chose to remain apolitical, the actress says, “The statements which we make or post not only lead to trolling, but also have a lot of real-life repercussions. Some even lead to death threats. The society we live in is not safe, and that is why no one will speak their mind. Not just Bollywood, but all of us are at fault here.”

‘MY PARENTS KEEP TELLING ME TO NOT TWEET ANYTHING’
“Ever since I started speaking out on social media, my parents live in a state of terror,” says Swara, adding, “They are always worried and terrified because of me. My father is always on alert and keeps sending me messages saying ‘This has happened in the country, please don’t tweet anything’. Sometimes, he sends screenshots of what I have said and tweeted, and says, ‘Let us discuss this’. That is when I know that I will get a good jhaad from him. My mom keeps requesting me to get off Twitter. But both of them agree with me to a large extent, as they know what I am saying is right.”

Swara has repeatedly battled vicious trolls, who often cite a particular scene from her movie Veere Di Wedding (in which her character is shown to be masturbating) to target her. Most recently, the same reference was used with regard to voting.

To that, Swara says, “These people forget that it was acting, and not real. Now, even if I post a picture of a flower, people will say, ‘Oh, you picked this up with your finger’.”

However, she says that she often fails to find the method to the madness of her trolls. “For me, when a person starts using gaalis in a conversation, it means that the person is left with no logic. I now have tactics to deal with it,” she shares.

Along with her team, she has sent legal notices to five websites who were circulating fake news about her. “I don’t look at my mentions at all. And if something bothers me, then I give it back, then and there,” she adds.