“I’m breaking up with you Twitter. You seem to have gotten lost in all the hate everyone is so ready to throw at each other, a place full of bullies, a place where abusing people is a normal code of conduct. I don’t need this kind of energy,” he said.
Following this, actors Aayush Sharma and Zaheer Iqbal also followed suit and said their goodbyes. While Sneha Ullal hinted that she might quit Twitter as well.
It all started when Kriti Sanon lashed out at social media toxicity in her recent post after the shocking death of her Raabta co-star Sushant Singh Rajput. She had written, “Social media is the fakest, most toxic place. If you haven’t posted RIP or said something publicly, you’re accused for not grieving. It seems social media is the new real world and real world has become fake.”
Filmmaker Karan Johar, who’s being massively trolled for promoting nepotistic after Rajput’s death, un-followed everyone on Twitter, except eight handles (four of which are of his production house). Whereas a week ago, filmmaker Shashank Khaitan also deactivated his Twitter account.
But what is this toxicity and where is it emerging from?
The double-edged sword
Ad expert Prahlad Kakkar explains. “I’ve stayed away from social media because there’s a lot of negativity, and trolling, which I don’t buy. It has empowered a lot of useless people with an opinion, without any repercussions. Also, they do it all anonymously.”
Filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar calls it the “double-edged sword,” especially for public figures. A place where if they comment or post, or don’t, nasty feedback are bound to come their way. “Social media is toxic, no two ways about it. Sometimes, you get rattled mercilessly, even a spelling mistake can get one trolled.”
Pressure to post
Experts also point out that once a person is on social media, s/he is expected to post on whatever is happening around. Clinical psychologist Pulkit Sharma elucidates, “If you’re on any platform, you have to post. You might not be interacting with whoever follows you, but they constantly judge you through your posts. If you haven’t replied to someone, you’re considered a narcissist. This pressure is always there.”
Echoing the sentiments of, Bhandarkar adds, “I agree with Kriti partly. When you feel close to somebody who passed away, you’re not in the frame of mind to say anything.”
Celebrity take
Actor Nimrat Kaur says she has never been the one to take any pressure. “Many times, I choose to be silent, and know that you don’t need to add to the chorus. I really don’t give a damn about what people think, commenting on something or not. I don’t write or post anything to garner a reaction, or to become a part of the hashtag club,” she said.
Actor Amit Sadh, on the other hand feels that both toxicity and good are there in equal amounts in life and on social media. “It’s human psychology, we want to shut the door and we call it toxic. You decide what strata of social media you want to be in. If there’s something toxic, you can choose to engage or not,” he said.
