TV Actors In Trouble For Using Casteist Slurs
Linus tackles things head-on. He takes sides in his analysis and it fits excellently with our editorial policy. No 'maybe's' and 'allegedly' for him, only things in black and white.
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By Linus Garg
First publised on 2021-05-26 04:56:28
About the Author
Linus tackles things head-on. He takes sides in his analysis and it fits excellently with our editorial policy. No 'maybe's' and 'allegedly' for him, only things in black and white.
View all posts by this Author
While it is difficult to believe that actors like Munmum Dutta (Tarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chasma) and Yuvika Chaudhary (Om Shanti Om) would knowingly use casteist slurs in any given situation, the controversy over these two letting slip words in their statements/blogs/videos that are widely perceived to be such shows how people have to be doubly sure of words they use and that old, casual and highly inappropriate meanings of words no longer hold. Twitter has exploded in a fury after they used the words and some people have even demanded their arrest. An FIR has been filed against Munmun in Indore.
There is no need to repeat the words used by the two actors. It will suffice to say that they used it in a context which lowered the esteem of some castes. City bred people often pick up these words through conversations with others who are more given to using street language. In general talk between common people, such words are commonly and casually used. But that is a graver crime as it perpetuates the slur by making it commonplace.
Hence, as in body shaming or any other thing that was acceptable, regrettably, behavior in the past, using words that demean people or professions associated with a caste is no longer acceptable. This has become so because the constant use of such words in other situations has acquired the venomous tone of abuse. Hence, calling a visually impaired person blind would not have mattered so much if the word blind was not used to abuse a normal person for making a glaring mistake.
In this age of social media, it is required that anyone, especially celebrities, putting his or her thoughts in public domain must be extra watchful in his or her choice of words, whatever the context might be. A thousands explanations, such as language barrier or misinterpretation, later would not set things right. Hence, casual use of words that are unacceptable for having other connotations must be avoided at all costs. Socially acceptable behavior, which includes the choice of words, is a must for being a part of social media.
