I’m allowed to think about myself: Ushna Shah
Pakistani actor Ushna Shah, who was recently criticized on social media for saying that she wouldn’t “bully or ostracize” anyone out of fear of the bad effects that would have on her co-actor Feroze Khan, went back on social media to defend her position.
The Habs starlet’s comment caused a lot of anger because Khan had been criticized on social media after his wife said he was abusive.
Saturday, Ushna wrote a heartfelt and thorough note on Instagram about how she felt about the situation.
“This Ramzan, I stood up to a big company for a woman who lost her father because of that company. I spoke up for a friend who was wrongfully jailed.”
The star’s case is based on what happened to the late TV show host Aamir Liaquat. In the months before he died, he got too much attention for making some controversial comments and was then criticized on social media.
Ushna wrote, “I’ve asked people not to be so mean to an ex-colleague who allegedly hurt a woman that we lose him like we lost Amir Liaquat. I’ve asked people not to go so far that there’s no going back, because I’ve seen what social media does: the punishment for stealing may be cutting off the hands, but we tend to cut off the heads.”
I’m allowed to think about myself: Ushna Shah
She then talked about the reaction and trolling she had gotten when she got married at the end of February.
“The reaction I got for dancing at my own wedding in what was called a “Indian style lehenga” was a good example.
“So when hundreds of thousands of people abuse a person for whatever they are said to have done and abuse their family day and night, nonstop, I know what that can do and it isn’t fair,” she wrote.
She then talked about how people had interpreted her past comments about the Feroze Khan case and defended her right to have her own opinion, saying that she didn’t agree with the “extreme right or left.”
“What I stand for is what makes sense to me. I can think about myself, even if it gets me in trouble. I don’t have to be on the far left or far right. I won’t say I’m sorry. I am not a “abuser sympathizer.” I care about people, and I don’t believe in executing people for crimes that don’t deserve it, even if they were found guilty.
Ushna talked about the effects of bullying and excessive trolling on social media and said that even people who had been accused of being guilty shouldn’t be pushed to the limit if the crime didn’t warrant it.
“I’m done with nameless mob justice. The world has become too ugly and toxic, from the most right-wing to the most left-wing points of view. I have a voice, and I’ll use it for any cause I think is right, whether it’s for animals, women who are allegedly wronged, stars who died and wanted (and got) more attention from the people I work for, or alleged wrongdoers who are getting too much punishment.
“This is how I’m made, and this is how I can look myself and God in the eye. Don’t make a big deal out of the fact that my voice bothers people. I will not give up my morals.”