'Money kills conscience': Netizens irked at Pooja Bedi's anti COVID lockdown post, she defends her stance

Amid the announcement of a 15-day curfew in Mumbai, former actress, columnist and wellness entrepreneur Pooja Bedi shared a video with her fiancé Maneck Contractor in Goa, on Wednesday, advocating people to not live life in fear and spend their days being masked up for a virus that isn't going away. 

Sharing a video on her Twitter handle, Pooja Bedi wrote, "Life is meant to be lived...not spent caged and masked for a year/years in fear of a virus that's clearly not going away! If you died tomorrow after year of masking/lockdown... what would ur greatest regret be?"

Tweeting another video Pooja wrote, "I (love) Goa!! There are SO many reasons to love Goa the outdoors The warmth of the locals The amazing food The sunshine & of course the fact that my health & wellness business is based in Goa @happysoulindia @goatourisminfo @goatourismtdg #happysoulmoment #happysoulwellness."

Joys of living in healthy, happy #goa .
Free your mind #NoFear
Life is meant to be lived... not spent caged and masked for a year/ years in fear of a virus that's clearly not going away!
If you died tomorrow after year of masking/lockdown.. what would ur greatest regret be? pic.twitter.com/ydXG5OGsou

— Pooja Bedi (@poojabeditweets) April 14, 2021

I Goa!! There are SO many reasons to love Goa the outdoors The warmth of the localsThe amazing food The sunshine & of course the fact that my health & wellness business is based in Goa@happysoulindia@goatourisminfo @goatourismtdg #happysoulmoment #happysoulwellness pic.twitter.com/qWTjxeIFBE

— Pooja Bedi (@poojabeditweets) April 14, 2021

At a time when frontline workers are working tirelessly to save lives amid the surge in cases and striving hard to give the best possible treatment to those affected with COVID, Pooja's "life of privilege" did not go down well with users who called her terms like 'birdbrain' and an 'entitled A-hole'. 

However, the former actress replied to several social media users and defended her stance saying she isn't flaunting her privilege, but 'expressing freedom'.

Ma'am people are dying of covid complications every day.check your privilege. God bless you.

— Funnybee (@Funnybee16) April 14, 2021

What privilege. ?? Beaches are available and accessible to every individual irrespective of what u consider privilege... We have a large coastline in India. It's only your state of mind (fearful or positive) that makes u avail the "privilege "

— Pooja Bedi (@poojabeditweets) April 15, 2021

"If - and I say if - you test positive, DO NOT use your privilege to get a hospital bed. Just avail of the facilities "available and accessible to every individual" as you put it. Btw I'm privileged too, enough to be able to work from home and to isolate. At least be aware," wrote a user. Pooja replied, "If i got covid.. I would do steam inhalation.. gargle with salt water.. rest... eat herbs & drink lots of kaada. Think positive thoughts & be happy that while I didn't have covid I LIVED.  & if I die of covid, well I'm  happy I LIVED FREELY & was not stuck in a cage for a year."

If - and I say if - you test positive, DO NOT use your privilege to get a hospital bed. Just avail of the facilities "available and accessible to every individual" as you put it. Btw I'm privileged too, enough to be able to work from home and to isolate. At least be aware. 

— Vidya Heble (@purrsiflager) April 16, 2021

If i got covid.. I would do steam inhalation.. gargle with salt water.. rest... eat herbs & drink lots of kaada. Think positive thoughts & be happy that while I didn't have covid I LIVED. & if I die of covid, well I'm happy I LIVED FREELY & was not stuck in a cage for a year.

— Pooja Bedi (@poojabeditweets) April 16, 2021

"Not everyone can go to a beach, get a boat and just 'enjoy life'. People are struggling to get food for their families everyday and here you are telling us not to wear masks and live freely. Seriously?" one person tweeted at her, and she replied, "I'm reiterating the need for lockdown to be lifted and to get people back their lives, freedom and livelihood."

Another Twitter user wrote, "Wow pooja you are such an entitled rich old A-hole !! The entire nation is gripped with the virus and hospitals and crematoriums are flooding. And here you are flashing your luxurious life in our faces. Hope you have to suffer the same soon." She replied, "Please Google Taiwan. It's lack of lock down. One of the most densely populated paces on rear the. Only 11 deaths. EVERYTHING Is open."

"On behalf of this super intelligent person i would like to apologise to all the covid warriors and ppl who suffered due to this. This is nt human behaviour this is clearly lack of a reality check nd too much privilege," tweeted a user. Pooja responded, "You can sneer & be as cynical as u wish! the fact remains that people have had their lives & livelihoods snatched from them thanks 2 lockdown.The stress,lack of exercise, lack of social life, lack of outdoors, livelihood challenges hav LOWERED their immunity put them MORE at risk (sic)."

On behalf of this super intelligent person i would like to apologise to all the covid warriors and ppl who suffered due to this. This is nt human behaviour this is clearly lack of a reality check nd too much privilege

— DK (@Deepanj28952839) April 16, 2021

You can sneer & be as cynical as u wish! the fact remains that people have had their lives & livelihoods snatched from them thanks 2 lockdown.The stress,lack of exercise, lack of social life, lack of outdoors, livelihood challenges hav LOWERED their immunity put them MORE at risk

— Pooja Bedi (@poojabeditweets) April 16, 2021

Another wrote, "If I mask and still die, at least I was not a spreader will be a relief to my conscience. May be money kills conscience."

For the unversed, the country recorded a single-day rise of 2,17,353 new coronavirus infections taking the total tally of COVID-19 cases to 1,42,91,917, while active cases surpassed the 15-lakh mark, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Friday (April 16). The death toll increased to 1,74,308 with 1,185 new fatalities,the highest since September 19, 2020, the data updated at 8 am showed.