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| Edited By: Pranav Joshi |Source: DNA webdesk |Updated: Sep 23, 2014, 11:27 AM IST
The Times of India-Deepika Padukone controversy refuses to die. Days after the actress lashed out at TOI for its video of her which encouraged viewers to examine her cleavage, Bombay Times went overboard, justifying the video. In an article that included scantily-clad pictures of Deepika and used arrows to indicate her body parts, Bombay Times tried to make out that Deepika was a 'hypocrite', a 'moral police' and that she was somehow 'asking for it'.
READ: TOI responds to Deepika Padukone again; sexism, hypocrisy and lack of journalistic ethics flow
While the article went viral and got panned almost universally on social media as an example of crass journalism, Twitterati began to use the term Dear Deepika to express solidarity with the actress and further embarrass TOI.
Dear Deepika you have 22 million and most from the industry supporting you. move forward your head held high cause u took the right stand
— KILL DILL ed (@versatilefan) September 22, 2014
Dear Deepika move ahead, no wonder whats this so called moral brigade or twitter khap says. u r a rockstar. #IStandWithDeepikaPadukone
— spring bubbles (@itztulip) September 22, 2014
This guy is smart:
"Dear Deepika, our point of view." Don't click on this, folks. They want you to click. If you click the link, they win.
— Siddharth Singh (@siddharth3) September 21, 2014
Deepika might have done this for publicity, but was this right on TOI's part being a national newspaper to post such things? Dear Deepika
— ankita agarwal (@912ankita) September 22, 2014
Yes, let us hope this does not happen:
Dear Deepika ,there is no doubt that there content was wrong..u stand against them aab kuch din bad unlogo ko interview dena chalu mat karna
— Salman's bracelet.. (@Being_Vishal007) September 22, 2014
Dear Deepika, Will Bollywood boycott Bombay Times? Or the solidarity with @deepikapadukone will end with twitter rants? @timesofindia
— Atul Unadkat (@AtuleUnadkat) September 22, 2014
@timesnow why dont u invite the editor of Times Entertainment on news hour to debate with Dear Deepika
— Rita Tornad (@Ritatornad) September 22, 2014
Here's some sarcasm for you:
Dear Deepika We are sorry for that but we did it because Arnab wants to know the reality behind.
— Imran Khan (@AAP_iz_Imran) September 22, 2014
Perfect.
Dear Deepika, this is the educated indian media version of victim shaming, and "you're asking for it". Sit back & let them look like idiots.
— social_papaya (@gayatri_sriram) September 22, 2014
Dear Deepika don't worry about any controversy, you are more worth than that the news paper (TOI).
— Good-Bad-Ugly!!! (@D_Good_Bad_Ugly) September 22, 2014
Dear Deepika.. I feel sorry for the girls including me who take stand against the wrong done to them. This society won't let us be at peace
— Shivani Mishra (@NikkiMishra) September 22, 2014
Dear Deepika, until recently, I was floored solely by your flawless beauty & grace. Adding respect & awe to that list. :-) @deepikapadukone
— Shankar Ranjit (@AngryYoungMallu) September 22, 2014
Whatever Dear Deepika has to say, one thing everyone shall agree is that TOI-let and it's online portal is high source of soft pornography
— Vivek Sakpal (@viveksakpal) September 22, 2014
However, not everyone was supportive of Deepika. While some users claimed it was all a publicity stunt, others sank lower in their quest to demean her:
Dear Deepika we all knew that one was a Promotional Strategy for FindingFanny bydway hws that Finding Cleavage #ReplaceMovieNameWithCleavage
— I Exist (@YouAwayPlease) September 22, 2014
Dear Deepika, now that you have shown TOI what journalism is, please show your film industry what cinema is. Get them to ban item numbers.
— Sourav Shakti (@souravshakti) September 22, 2014
Katrina and Kareena nvr used such type of publicity stunts nd still they are no.1 Dear Deepika #ReplaceMovieNameWithCleavage
— Arjun Chabbra (@iBeingArjun) September 22, 2014
This was the worst of them all:
Dear Deepika you're nothing just an shameless women
— Devi ❤❤ (@salmansheart) September 22, 2014
The controversy has snowballed into a war on social media, and just about all and sundry seem to be weighing in with their valuable opinions. Those who are criticising Deepika, however, either seem to miss the idea of consent or they plain ignore it.
While it is heartening to see the support pouring in for Deepika Padukone, some insensitive tweets also remind us that perhaps the plague of objectification of women in certain media houses is only indicative of a larger, similar mentality outside.
