Priya Prakash Varrier faced the wrath of the trolls, when she announced her donation to the state relief fund.
Malayalam actor Tovino Thomas was trolled on social media for lending a helping hand in the ongoing relief efforts in Kerala, which has been ravaged by the worst floods in a century. The actor was accused of participating in the relief work for the sake of publicity.
Reacting to the criticism, Tovino said it “hurts” when people make such allegations. “I was pained to hear the comment that I took part in the relief work for publicity. I did this only because I’m humane. Now, even if no one sees my film in the name of this allegation, I have no problem. But never say that I did this for publicity. That hurts me… We, actors, are not fools to believe that people affected by flood shall go and see our films (because we did this service..),” he told Kaumudi online.
Tovino was actively involved in organizing required supplies for relief camps. He even turned his house in Irinjalakkuda as a temporary shelter for those affected by floods and promised to provide basic necessities for the flood victims until the situation comes under control.
Tovino was not the first Malayalam celebrity to get trolled at a time when Kerala was trying to recover from an unimaginable calamity. Actors such as Dulquer Salmaan and Mallika Sukumaran were also subjected to trolling on social media forcing them to issue rebuttals.
While Tovino was slammed for his active role in relief efforts, Dulquer was criticised for not being in Kerala at the time of need. The negative comments left Karwaan actor very upset and prompted him to lash out at the trolls. “To all those who think because I’m not physically present that I’m not helping I have nothing to prove to the likes of you. Atleast in a time like this when we are all trying our best and coming together and becoming one, keep out your negativity, hate and judgement. The ones writing these comments are nowhere near any of the relief camps or the affected areas. So by attacking others it doesn’t make you better than them (sic),” he said in a statement posted on his Facebook page.
Dulquer was among the celebrities who were actively sharing distress posts regarding the supplies that were required in thousands of relief camps across Kerala. He also made a donation of Rs 25 lakh to the relief fund.
Veteran actor Mallika, who is also the mother of actor Prithviraj, was trolled after a photo of her went viral. The photo showed her sitting inside a big aluminum vessel as she is being moved through inundated streets by the rescue workers. She issued an audio message explaining the distressful situation she was in before she was rescued.
Recently, internet sensation Priya Prakash Varrier faced the wrath of trolls, when she announced her donation to the state relief fund. She tried to preempt the trolls by requesting not to degrade her contribution to the relief fund but it backfired.
“This Onam, doing what I can for our state.Actions speak louder than words.Mkae your valuable contributions now.This is nothing done for publicity.It is just that people should be aware of the amount we are donating to the fund so that they utilise it properly.Please do not degrade even if not appreciate,” she posted on her Instagram page recently.