Smriti Irani's '98 beauty pageant video enters "Pathaan" Twitter war
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New Delhi: Footage Union Minister Smriti Irani running for a beauty pageant in 1998, was thrown into a Twitter battle between BJP and TMC leaders, started after the inauguration of the Kolkata International Film Festival 2022, NDTV reported.
The online war via tweets broke on Friday, amid the controversy that emerged around the Shah Rukh khan-Deepika Padukone starrer "Pathaan". Right-wing activists had found issues with Padukone wearing a saffron bikini in a song from the movie and had called for a ban on the film in two states.
Here, replying to a Tweet by the BJP's Amit Malviya, Trinamool Congress leader Riju Dutta posted a video of Irani at the pageant contest wearing a swimsuit.
रंग दे तू मोहे गेरुआ…… pic.twitter.com/KSNmA9wp6h
— 𝐑𝐢𝐣𝐮 𝐃𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐚 (@DrRijuDutta_TMC) December 16, 2022
Malviya's tweet was of Arjit Singh singing one of the songs he sang, "Rang de More Gerua". He hit TMC, saying that, like Arjit Singh choosing the song, everyone, including Bachchan, is aware that Bengal is turning its colour to Saffron, the BJP's colour. Dutta replied to this post with a video, with notes over the footage saying that Irani is now union minister and was Femina Miss India in 1998.
But it was BJP MP Locket Chatterjee who got furious and retorted back. Chatterjee accused Dutta of misogyny.
Shame on Mamata Banerjee for appointing such misogynist men as TMC's national spokesperson. He has no respect for women and the choices they make in life. They resent successful women and their rise. Men like him are responsible for rising crime against women. https://t.co/56WntLxKgb
— Locket Chatterjee (@me_locket) December 16, 2022
However, Dutta was well-armed. He slapped back that it was the BJP leaders who defended rapists of 2002 Gujarat riots victim Bilkis Bano as "sanskari brahmins".
Moreover, I belong to a party whose leader is the definition of women empowerment. And you from a party that calls rapists "sanskari brahmins". So please..side hatiye !!
— 𝐑𝐢𝐣𝐮 𝐃𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐚 (@DrRijuDutta_TMC) December 16, 2022
Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra of the BJP had started the attack on "Pathaan", saying that the songs in the film revealed a contaminated mindset and threatened to ban it from being released in the state if corrections are not made.
What is pointed out objectionably by the right-wing front is the 'Besharam Rang' (Shameless Colour) song, and Deepika donned a saffron bikini. Several netizens who have reacted to the post cited that Irani's swimsuit is one of the demonstrations of the double standards of those criticising Deepika Padukone's bikini.
