While the phenomenon of celebrity trolling is terribly common on social media these days, we often forget (conveniently so) that no matter how confident they may appear on the outside, bullying and hateful words targeted at them can affect them mentally.
In this light, a Twitter user named Emily Klee recently explained how trolling Katy Perry was highly insensitive. She wrote in a series of tweets, “Katy Perry literally live-streamed her therapy session, showed the world inside her mental health, showed the world she’s human with human emotions and is impacted by the words of heartless people. Yet you cruel people are still going to attack her over and over again. Yet suddenly you’re also all advocates for suicide prevention? News flash! Celebs have feelings and poor mental health too! They are affected just as easily as others! It’s still bullying (sic).”
Perry was subjected to heavy trolling on Twitter soon after the American pop star tweeted about anxiety.
Psychologist Richa Khetawat agrees that some celebrities are sensitive and rude remarks and comments can get overwhelming for them. “It can be extremely traumatic and stressful. When you try to take down the trolls, it can sometimes be unsafe as there are severe cases of cyber-bullying. While it’s best to ignore trolls, you don’t need to completely chicken out either,” she says.
Twinkle Khanna
Shockingly, 40 per cent of American adults have reportedly personally experienced online abuse, with almost half of them experiencing severe forms of harassment, including physical threats and stalking. Further, 70 per cent of women described online harassment as a “major problem”, according to a report on The Independent.
Don’t waste your time on trolls
On the other hand, Twinkle Khanna says that people who take trolls seriously are foolish. “They (trolls) are like cockroaches. Once in a while, you spray repellent and they scamper out of your way and you go on. But, I do look at criticism and I examine it very carefully. Sometimes it’s valid and it always tells me about the world around me or myself,” she says.
Rakul Preet Singh
Actress Rakul Preet Singh, who was also trolled nastily for posting her photos online, says, “As celebrities, we often get nasty comments on various social media platforms and I just don’t read them. I think it’s best to avoid trolls and let what they say not affect you. Don’t take them personally. You are entitled to your opinion.”
Back home, Malayalam actress Malavika Mohanan, too, condemned the trolling culture down south. She spoke about how actress Parvathy was viciously trolled and abused by fans on various online platforms for her comments against some dialogues in actor Mammootty’s film.
Hyderabad-based model and actress Swetha Jadhav believes that people troll others to get attention and often have issues themselves. “Trollers are frustrated with their own lives and they vent their frustration on others, especially on celebrities as they are easy targets. It’s better to avoid them and not waste time replying to their messages,” she strongly feels.
Meanwhile, supermodel Deborah Doris Fell, who has thousands of followers on social media, says that one should rather concentrate on the love that you receive from other fans. “Fortunately, I haven’t received hate on social media. I do receive a lot of proposals from fans and I just thank them for their love. I would say, instead of focusing on the hate, focus on the love you receive from so many other fans,” she explains.
The endless list of celebs trolled online
- Upcoming actress Sri Reddy is being brutally bashed on social media for opening up about the ugly casting couch in Tollywood
- At the Golden Globes this year, Kendall Jenner walked the red carpet with some visible acne on her face. Soon, the supermodel was heavily trolled on social media and fans even made memes on her
- Black Panther star Michael B. Jordan was attacked by an Internet troll for revealing that he lives with his parents and loves anime
- Priyanka Chopra, Deepika Padukone, Katrina Kaif, Mithali Raj, Samantha Ruth Prabhu and Jahnvi Kapoor are some of the Indian celebrities who were trolled in recent times
