With Twitter feuds on the rise, it comes as a little surprise to note the fanaticism of celeb loyalists surfacing online, more often than not. Testifying to the notion is the recent instance of a sizable Twitterati slamming Tanmay Bhat for taking a jibe at Priyanka Chopra for her ‘accent’.
The tongue-in-cheek war of words on social media went overboard to such an extent, that PeeCee had to intervene and calm her followers down by tweeting “Guys it was a joke!! From me and him!! Comedy is the smartest form of entertainment! and @thetanmay has it down!xoxo!”.
Seasoned actor Naseeruddin Shah found himself in a soup for his comments on deceased superstar Rajesh Khanna. On opining that India’s first superstar was “a very limited actor,” Naseeruddin earned Rajesh Khanna’s daughter Twinkle’s ire online.
Things went haywire with hate comments online; and the actor was shamed for his comments by infuriated fans, until he apologised. The episode met with closure only after son-in-law, Akshay Kumar commented how the matter was over and people should move on, as an apology was made.
History, too, is laden with instances, where stars have repeatedly had a war of words among fans during online banter. Be it during the infamous Zayn Mallik and Calvin Harris Twitter spat, where the war of words were always deemed as “friendly banter” and all done in the right and probably ‘light hearted’ spirits by the artistes or when popular singer-songwriter Justin Bieber asked fans to relax during one of his online mudslinging with popular boy band Jonas Brothers.
Talking about this new-age trend, Sachin A. Tantry, a journalism professor and new media expert says, “Taking offense and shaming somebody just for their opinion or comment on a celeb or during a tongue-in-cheek online banter indicates an underlying complex. While it’s okay to express something was said or done in bad taste online, going all over the place with hateful comments, just because of somebody’s snide remarks against a celebrity you adore is a plain indication of an unhealthy way of perceiving things and a fragile ego. The aforementioned episodes only highlight the plight of an obsessed fan, who fails to comprehend the difference between fan following and fanaticism.”
