The habit of social media users of not letting go of anything is known. From turning things into memes, to constantly talking about them, they never lose their hold. Well, the same happens with the Lollywood actor Meera every time she speaks broken English.
Meera often becomes the victim of keyboard warriors who take the mickey out of her skills as an English speaker. From time to time, Meera has spoken English in the public eye, and her proficiency in the foreign tongue is not the same as native speakers.
Despite the fact that English is not the actor’s native tongue, we live in a flawed world where trolls have plenty to say about how she speaks it. The social stigma attached with the limited Pakistani population that had the privilege of attending English medium schools continues taking pride in the language which is not even theirs.
We all see memes and video clips ridiculing Meera’s English that occasionally surface on the internet, criticizing the actor’s accent and grammatical errors. Sadly, many social media users validate the mockery by becoming part of it themselves.
One such video was recently shared on Instagram by actor Zarnish Khan, who quipped back at trolls who believe there is nothing wrong with mocking English.
Zarnish Khan speaks up
“Stop it already people!” Khan wrote on Instagram stories. “I’m pretty sure all the people who make such memes or cut-out video clips are a bunch of idiots themselves who might not even know how to speak their own mother tongue properly, let alone speak fluent English.”
“Just because you can hide behind the anonymity of the cyber network does not give you the right to make fun of other people,” she said. “Maybe she can’t speak well in English but is that a crime? How well do you know this language? Are you ready for an open challenge? I bet you aren’t!”
Khan concluded by requesting people to not be “so shallow”.
Khan makes an important point. In Pakistan, many believe that English is superior to our indigenous languages. Bullying someone for whatever reason can have a devastating impact on an individual’s mental health. The Baaji star is no stranger to this.
It may be recalled that Meera was admitted to a hospital for depression in April. Regrettably, she became a laughing stock, even amongst celebrities such as Frieha Altaf. The model-turned-PR manager had the audacity to joke about Meera’s mental health condition.
At the end of the day, we all must agree to get over our colonial hangover when it comes to English. It is also high time we Meera, and many others a break from constant trolling. As Khan said, bas kardo!
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