Zoya Akhtar Has a Perfect Response to Trolls

Zoya Akhtar is one of the few Indian celebrities who doesn’t mince words when calling a spade a spade. The filmmaker recently hit back at trolls in her own style. She posted a story on Instagram where Zoya shares a typical conversation with trollers on social media.

When a troll says, “I am going to boycott your film,” Zoya says, “First, boycott my page (laughing loud emoticon).” In another story, Zoya again hits back at haters in a boss-like manner. The woman with a strong voice wrote, “Troll: I am unfollowing you”, to which she replied with a “Yay (smiling emoticon).”

Zoya has joined her peers in Bollywood to support Rhea Chakraborty against the way she is being portrayed in media. Following the arrest of Rhea on September 8 by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in an alleged drug nexus, a few Indian celebrities expressed their outrage.

A campaign #JusticeforRhea has been trending online. Zoya, like many others, shared “smash the patriarchy” message seen on the black tee worn by Rhea on the day of her arrest.

The quote reads, “Roses are red, violets are blue, let’s smash the patriarchy, me and you.”

The message found resonance in many other celebrities like Shabana Azmi, Farhan Akhtar, Shibani Dandekar, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Sonam Kapoor, Vidya Balan and Anurag Kashyap, who also shared the quote in a show of solidarity with Rhea.

Zoya, along with her father, Javed Akhtar and brother, Farhan, during an interaction with India Today in July, responded to the debates around nepotism and favouritism in Bollywood.

“If I have money, I am putting money on my son, this is nepotism? Then in every industry there is nepotism. It is not about inside-outsider, it is basically that people are angry about haves and have-nots in the country. I am not going to change my parents or my career, so now live with it (sic),” she said.

Read: I’m Not Going to Change My Parents or Career, So Live With It: Zoya Akhtar on Insider Vs Outsider