With all the debate and discussion around whether Pakistani actors should or should not be allowed to work in India, you couldn’t have escaped the “news” of actor Fawad Khan’s comments on India once he had “safely landed” in Pakistan. Fawad’s “ingrate statement” about Bollywood and India must have reached you through Facebook posts, retweets on Twitter, pings on your mobile via WhatsApp - the avenues are endless.
Many of you might have shared or forwarded the same message to your friends, relatives and spread it further via WhatsApp groups with the added comment of how Fawad’s attitude reaffirmed our carefully informed opinion about “the ungrateful Pakistani”.
Some of you who strongly believe that Pakistani actors need to be shown the door must have quickly sent it to your friends or colleagues who don’t hold the same view with a “we told you so” smirk.
So where exactly did Fawad Khan say what he had to say about India? I did a quick scan of the websites carrying Fawad’s statements to figure that out.
A website called Godofsmallthing.com ran a report with the headline – Fawad Khan Speaks Up About Indian’s after Landing In Pakistan and it Will Break Hearts of Many (sic) with the actor’s quotes. The article, which has 394,902 views till now and has over 13,000 shares on Facebook quotes Fawad as having said, “My first priority is Pakistan. Pakistan comes first, Indian person’s heart is so small. Only money is important for these people, there is no love for country and our soldiers.”
The article goes on to berate Fawad for making this statement and ends the piece by saying – We do not authenticate the story by our own. Source of this post includes: Internet Hindu, Threemad.com (sic)
On visiting Internethindu.org, which has ‘Voice of Hindu’ as its tagline, you get an article titled – Fawad Khan uses Harsh Words Against India, After Reaching Pakistan. Those Who Supported Him Should Now Die Out Of Shame.
The extremely poorly written piece repeats the same quote allegedly attributed to Fawad, and goes on to say that with this statement the Pakistani actor has “spit on the face of these Indian supporters”, all of who “just need to die”.
Charmingly, at the end of the rant, the website says the source of the article is Threemad.com.
If you visit Threemad.com, the site has the very same report with a slight change in the headline, which is – Fawad Khan Throws Out Harsh Words Against India, After Reaching Pakistan. Those Who Supported Him Should Now Die Out Of Shame..!!!
But again, the website does not claim to have heard, seen or recorded Fawad having said anything that the article reports as the actor having said. Instead, it calmly nudges us towards the direction of something called Dainik Bharat as its “source”. But the story itself has already got 309,000 shares on Facebook.
A cursory look at Dainik Bharat’s Facebook page gives you an idea about what to expect. The website ran a poll yesterday (2 October, Gandhi Jayanti) asking its readers - “Turant Vote Kar Duniya Ko Bataye De, Asli Mahatma Kaun Hai - Nathuram Godse Ya Gandhi” (Vote Quickly and Tell the World Who Is the Real Mahatma – Nathuram Godse Or Gandhi).
The story in Dainik Bharat is headlined – Fawad Khan Ne Bharat Par Hi Ab Hamla Bol Diya, Bharatiyon Ko Bataya “Chhote Log”
Written in Hindi, the report states that the President of Indian Motion Pictures Producers’ Association (IMPPA), TP Aggarwal revealed that, after leaving India, actor Fawad Khan has been criticising the very country (India) where he was working and making money. As per the report, Aggarwal gives the exact quote which was allegedly said by an angry Fawad on returning to Pakistan. Here is what Fawad reportedly said:
"Bollywood kisi ke baap ki hai kya jo hum wahan kaam nahin karenge, Bollywood hamare logon ke wajah se hi hai. Jo log hamara virodh kar rahe hain, woh hote kaun hai virodh karne wale, inn chhote logon ki virodh ki hume kya parwah".
So Fawad’s alleged quote had taken a life of its own and become something else altogether by the time it reached the first website I encountered, BUT....
But finally, here was a person in flesh and blood (TP Aggarwal) who I could call and confirm that Fawad had indeed said whatever we Indians were condemning him for saying. So I called up Aggarwal and asked him where he got Fawad’s statement from and the man politely dismisses it saying, “Maine meeting mein suna tha, koi bata raha tha...”. Why am I not surprised? However, I persist and ask, “Do you remember who told you this?” and Aggarwal shrugs me off saying “Nahi mujhe yaad nahi hai.” BOOM!
Many of you would have already guessed how this story was going to end.
Fact is, no matter what your opinion is on the ban of Pakistani actors in India – the propaganda to discredit any person by attributing imaginary quotes to him, then abusing, ridiculing him and then sharing the fabricated statements via social media to further generate hatred and animosity against him is downright unethical, criminal and pathetic. You do not share a factually fraudulent story just because it suits your politics.
In the age of internet journalism, social media provides you with immense power and before clicking on the ‘share’ button, do always remember what Uncle Ben said – with great power comes great responsibility.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)