Ash's troubles

By Fuad Omar.

On a more serious note - the amount of press attention given to Aishwarya Rai and not being conducted in a professional manner is treading on dangerous ground as it is beginning to incite communal divides. One article in particular has played the communal card and delves into malicious levels of journalism I have never before witnessed in my career. It's amazing strength she is showing and we wish Aishwarya the very best and hope the press leaves her and Salman well alone, salvaging whatever little respect the profession seems to have left, especially after recent events. One particular angle of reporting which has disturbed Aishwarya is the constant mis-reporting on her apparent put up with abuse, which she states is ridiculous and very malicious. "Such writings are very dangerous. Do the people involved realize their responsibility as media-persons? Accidents and falls are serious matters. To blame someone for something like this is an even more serious matter." Aishwarya was commenting tersely on wild speculations in the press last year when she fell down the stairs in front of her home and false rumours spread that Salman had abused her. She has spoken saying things are being so distorted - it is getting out of hand. Speaking to journalist Jitesh Pillai she also spoke of the damage done and the extent which it has reached:

"Have you read the kind of things Salman's family has been dragged into? Why make it a communal issue and fester more negativity. We live in tough times...why fan the communal flames some more. I realised the disastrous repercussions when I got fan mail saying that they'd fix Salman and his family. That really upset me. The media has made me out to be one hell-of-a-daughter! But Salman's family has been extremely supportive. The news poured in when I was shooting for Devdas. They kept calling on me throughout the day to check if I was alright. Salman who's stayed away from the media for over 10 years wants to talk for the first time. Why? Because my family are upset. I feel responsible somewhere because two innocent families have been dragged into all this muck. Salman's one of the most vilified and misunderstood people. He's never felt the need to explain his stance. But this time, I can see that there's a lot of hurt there."

This writer wholeheartedly condemns these articles which have slandered and maligned the image of two decent human beings who have braved more than their fair share of controversy. We refer you to our stance on such articles by the article on The Death of Journalism, available on this site.