Taapsee Pannu took to Twitter to comment on the rising instances of intolerance in India. She said that those easily offended should look into strengthening their value system and not become a "propaganda teacher for others."
"If one tweet rattles your unity, one joke rattles your faith or one show rattles your religious belief then it's you who has to work on strengthening your value system not become 'propaganda teacher' for others," the actor tweeted.
Taapsee was alluding to the outrage that popstar Rihanna sparked after her tweet condemning the internet blockade at farmers' protest sites in Delhi went viral on 2 February. Many social media users took offence at what they saw as foreign interference. The Indian government too released a statement condemning celebrities who have spoken out about the farmers' protest on social media calling it "propaganda". Soon after, celebs such as Akshay Kumar, Karan Johar, Ajay Devgn and others tweeted messages in support of the government with similar wording and the hashtags #IndiaTogether and #IndiaAgainstPorpaganda, which the government had used in its statement.
Taapsee's tweet also possibly referred to comedian Munawar Faruqui who has been jailed in Indore for a joke that police have been unable to prove he made, as well as Amazon Prime Video web series Tandav and Mirzapur against which BJP leaders have filed criminal complaints and FIRs accusing them of insulting religious sentiments and maligning a particular community.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)