Of course, the viral clip failed to include Dua’s several other queries on Bhaker’s childhood in a Haryana village or her hatred of maths in school. In his defamation plea, Dua argued that other than his competence being attacked, this false narrative was distracting from Bhaker’s stellar performance.
A fortnight ago journalist Rohan Dua moved the Delhi High Court against a toxic barrage of social media posts calling his interview with Olympian Manu Bhaker “sexist” and “unprofessional”. The 12-minute exchange ran on The New Indian channel on YouTube that has 45.1k subscribers. It was shared on X, where Dua has 76k followers. His questions, initially about her terrific achievements in Paris, veered, with some innuendo, to her interactions with fellow medallist Neeraj Chopra. Clickbait perhaps, but YouTubers, and indeed journalists, in general know details of life on the circuit interest viewers. It must be noted that Bhaker was charmingly indulgent with this gentle prodding.
However, armchair activists on X, always looking to stir the proverbial hornet’s nest, cherry-picked this alleged “link up” and Dua’s admiring declaration that Bhaker was the most beautiful Olympian India has ever produced. Before Dua knew it, cleverly edited portions of his interview went viral, and he was getting slammed for “trivialising” Bhaker.
Of course, the viral clip failed to include Dua’s several other queries on Bhaker’s childhood in a Haryana village or her hatred of maths in school. In his defamation plea, Dua argued that other than his competence being attacked, this false narrative was distracting from Bhaker’s stellar performance. The situation is absurd — that someone is forced to seek the intervention of the overburdened High Court to be absolved of the charge of sexism. Presiding Justice Navin Chawla ordered the social media handles to delete the posts within a week. However, this somewhat comical feud raises the issue, are men not supposed to compliment women anymore?
It’s true that appearance is the go-to compliment for women and it can be argued it shouldn’t be, but there are nuances within all our conversations. In our climate of appalling crimes against women, when spiteful online bullies accuse a Dua of sexism, in our wandering imaginations, we unfairly write him off as a lascivious jerk. Besides, the presumption, that after all her staggering achievements Bhaker would be fazed by a couple of cheesy questions, is ridiculous in itself. She is objectively beautiful and like any gorgeous, accomplished woman, laughingly took the compliment in her stride.
Dua comes across as an earnest, harmless sort so it’s puzzling that what really got the goat of the trolls were the questions from his rapid fire round: Have you watched Emily in Paris? The insinuated accusation being, oh my God, you’re suggesting she’s an airhead. It’s not an unforgivable crime that Bhaker, or anyone else for that matter, enjoys a shut-down-your-brains show. An atmosphere of insufferable feminist posturing has taken over, leaving no room for levity in interactions between men and women.
Fun fact: you can be a critically thinking, highly ambitious sportswoman like Bhaker who would also enjoy a romantic date at the top of the Eiffel Tower (another of Dua’s prompts). As Walt Whitman observed, we contain multitudes. If anyone would bother analysing the crowd who objected to this interview, I’m willing to bet my left leg, they are people who have never received a compliment, can’t dream of reaching Paris or being asked out on a date to the bottom of the Qutb Minar, forget the top.
Who started this sanctimonious nonsense that it’s inappropriate to praise a woman’s looks? It depends on who’s doing it and the context. As a woman I can say, of course it’s nice to be appreciated for one’s work. But I’m also aware that the morning newspaper is the evening’s trash. It’s not just what I do, almost nothing anyone does really matters — but we all live with ourselves. If someone thinks I look radiant, I am happily cheered and I’m damned if I’m going to be made to feel guilty for admitting so. For sanity’s sake, let there be space, occasionally, for the light-hearted contradictions within all our personalities.
The writer is director, Hutkay Films
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
First uploaded on: 08-09-2024 at 07:45 IST
