Smoking is absolutely injurious to your health but this particular cigarette seems to have burned a lot of people.
So, just to recap a bit on the Mahira and Ranbir front – these pictures surfaced:
And in one swift move, Mahira and Ranbir collectively caused a meltdown across the two nations.
However, as soon as the pictures surfaced, some Pakistanis already saw what was going to happen.
They knew the ghairat brigade would be on Mahira’s case soon.
In fact, some people pointed out the hypocrisy in all those waiting to attack Mahira Khan.
And their predictions were correct. The desi ghairat brigade descended upon Mahira with their pointless wrath.
Some told Mahira that she had lost a fan.
Because apparently, wearing and doing what you want means that you don’t have morals.
Some people questioned her faith as well.
Because it was obviously their concern.
Unnecessarily disrespectful posts like these started circulating as well.
Apparently, Mahira Khan’s izzat lies in her clothes?
Because when our oh-so-pious men strut around in pools near scantily clad women or pose half naked themselves, that’s fine. But God forbid Mahira Khan allegedly wears a dress.
Some people claimed to have lost respect for her.
But hey, if your respect for Mahira Khan was tied to her clothes, maybe you need to reevaluate if you ever respected her in the first place. Jus sayin’.
And some people made some passed some pretty low comments.
Very distasteful.
However, people were ready to get up and defend Mahira Khan. Momina Mustehsan happened to be one of those people.
Meesha Shafi jumped in as well to stand up for her friend.
Yeah, Mahira. Don’t let – uh – people get you down.
Others spoke up against the aimless slut-shaming as well, pointing out the evident double standards that were being perpetrated.
Some pointed out the blatant hypocrisy in calling out Mahira for the pictures…
…while raising a point that’s worth pondering over.
However, in the end, this tweet pretty much summed up what’s going on.
Haters gonna hate. Etc, etc.
It’s truly unfortunate that these pictures have sparked outrage over social media. Why can we only respect women who we can confine or limit? The guy in the photo was equally indulging in smoking while standing out in public. Why can a woman not make her own choices without being the target of people who are in no place whatsoever to pass judgments?
Regardless of whether the pictures are fake, whether that’s not Mahira or whether it’s from a film set – the way some of us have reacted has been appalling. Mahira is an asset to the country and her work is what makes us proud of who she is. If we can’t respect our artists and their choices, perhaps we don’t deserve them in the first place.
What do you have to say about the ghairat brigade descending upon Mahira? Let us know in the comments.
