Old comments return to haunt Swara after she calls Pakistan “a failed state”

Swara Bhaskar seems to have a magnet for attracting the trolls. Yet again, the Bollywood actress finds herself as a target of the online trolls over her comments on Pakistan. In an interview, the Veere Di Wedding star had said that she is “not the spokesperson of the Pakistan government” after her recent flick was denied a release in Pakistan by the Pakistani establishment. Terming Pak a ‘failing state’, “What do you expect from a state that's run by Sharia Laws,” Swara asked Rajeev Masand, the interviewer.

"They're a no secular state. I'm not surprised at all. Why should we hold up Pakistan, which is a failing state - I don't understand why we keep taking pleasure and feeling a sense of self-worth from all the silly things that happen in Pakistan," she had added.

Swara’s comments, however, did not go down well with her counterparts in the neighbouring country as they got back to her with her own comments back in 2015 when the Indian actress had talked to a Lahore based TV channel.

Several Pakistan celebrities like Urwa Hocane, Gohar Rasheed and Armeena Rana Khan took the charge and responded to “all the ill-informed facts of the star”.

While Urwa reminded Swara of her interview on a Pakistani channel in 2015 where she expressed her “liking for the neighbouring country”, Gohar and Armeena lamented Swara's comments as a ‘publicity stunt’.

“While you’re on this spree of empowering women, I must say you’ve become a bitter person. And all of this is odd coming from a citizen of a state that bans their own films i.e. Padmavat,” tweeted Urwa.

Calling Swara an “ignorant person who is also quiet contradictory in her own statements”, Urwa tweeted, “It’s not a failing state for sure but u come across as a “Failing Human Being”.

Armeena Khan said, “there’s a way to promote a film and then there’s a back-handed way to do it. I know you are relatively new, but you’ve been ill advised by your PR (if you have any) you can’t antagonise an entire nation. Some people were looking forward to your film.”

“Distinction between governments and the people of a country”

As the debate heated, Veere di Wedding actress came out with a clarification saying, "There should be a distinction between States/ governments of a country & the people of that country. My regard for and goodwill towards the people of Pakistan remains unchanged.

“Some of my closest friends are Pakistani. Lahore remains one of my soul cities," she added.

Although it was not a great move to take the whole country Seems like Swara is dodging herself smartly to not hinder her celebrity image as well as for the success of her movie Veere di wedding which has become top five weekend grosser of 2018 along with Padmavat, Padman, Raid and Bhaagi 2.

Apart from Veere di Wedding, Pakistan also banned the release of other recent Bollywood movies such as Raazi and Parmanu.

With inputs from Himani Jain