A video of two women VJs from Sun Music making fun of actor Suriya's height on a TV show had sparked much outrage on social media. Fans of the actor, mostly from Erode and Namakkal, gathered outside the Sun TV office in Chennai, protesting the remarks made by the anchors.
The Sun Music show Franka Sollata had anchors Niveditha and Sangeetha commenting that it would be difficult for Suriya to act with Amitabh Bachchan because of the difference in height between the two.
The video clip was shared by several on social media, including prominent members of the Tamil film industry. Actor Suriya has now broken his silence on the issue. On Saturday, the actor tweeted in Tamil that people should not lower themselves by responding to criticism which was below the belt.
"Please use your time and energy for productive purposes. Let society benefit," he said. Suriya also used the hashtag #AnbaanaFans, making it clear that he was addressing his fans through the message.
தரம் தாழ்ந்த விமர்சனங்களுக்கு எதிர்வினையாற்றி நம் தரத்தை நாம் குறைத்துகொள்ள வேண்டாம். உங்களின் நேரத்தையும், சக்தியையும் பயனுள்ள செயல்களுக்கு செலவிடுங்கள். சமூகம் பயன் பெற. #AnbaanaFans
— Suriya Sivakumar (@Suriya_offl) January 20, 2018
The viral clip was shared by actor Vishal, the President of the Producers' Council and the General Secretary of the Nadigar Sangam, as well as producers like SR Prabhu and Gnanavel Raja. Although the body shaming was rightly slammed by many, several users directed vitriolic abuse towards the two women.
Fan rage is common on social media and the situation often escalates to rape and even death threats when any criticism is levied at a popular star. In the past, actors like Vijay and Ajith have come forward to issue statements after instances of abuse done in their name.
Suriya's quick response to the situation has been lauded by many. The actor has always asked his fans not to deify him and to put their time and energies to good use for other purposes. The tweet is in line with his messages to fans over the years.
Watch the fans protest here: