MUMBAI: Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma has hit out at “misogynistic” online trolls after she received abusive social media messages over her reported on-off relationship with Indian Test cricket captain Virat Kohli.
Star batsman Kohli pleaded with Internet users to stop attacking Sharma in a passionate appeal on Instagram earlier this year, saying it was shameful to blame her for his performances.
Ahead of the release of blockbuster “Sultan,” in which Sharma plays a female wrestler, the Hindi film actress told AFP it had been difficult coming to terms with the online abuse.
“It’s one thing to be abused for a film I did or to be trolled if I did something wrong. But to be abused for something I had no association with? That was hurtful,” she said.
“I have been trolled more than many of my peers. At the beginning I didn’t know how to react but now I don’t care,” Sharma added in the telephone interview.
The status of Kohli and Sharma’s high-profile relationship is a staple in the gossip pages of India’s newspapers, despite the couple themselves refusing to speak directly on the subject.
Sharma, 28, and Kohli, 27, began dating in 2014 but were rumored to have broken up earlier this year before apparently getting back together again.
In March, Kohli, currently the hottest property in Indian cricket, wrote on Instagram: “Shame on blaming and making fun of her (Sharma) when she has no control over what I do with my sport.”
Star batsman Kohli pleaded with Internet users to stop attacking Sharma in a passionate appeal on Instagram earlier this year, saying it was shameful to blame her for his performances.
Ahead of the release of blockbuster “Sultan,” in which Sharma plays a female wrestler, the Hindi film actress told AFP it had been difficult coming to terms with the online abuse.
“It’s one thing to be abused for a film I did or to be trolled if I did something wrong. But to be abused for something I had no association with? That was hurtful,” she said.
“I have been trolled more than many of my peers. At the beginning I didn’t know how to react but now I don’t care,” Sharma added in the telephone interview.
The status of Kohli and Sharma’s high-profile relationship is a staple in the gossip pages of India’s newspapers, despite the couple themselves refusing to speak directly on the subject.
Sharma, 28, and Kohli, 27, began dating in 2014 but were rumored to have broken up earlier this year before apparently getting back together again.
In March, Kohli, currently the hottest property in Indian cricket, wrote on Instagram: “Shame on blaming and making fun of her (Sharma) when she has no control over what I do with my sport.”
