From posing in front of forest fire to taking pics with casket, 5 times influencers went too far
Social media influencing is a full time career now. But many times the social media stars cross the line and land up in controversies. Here are 5 such incidents.
Do you ever buy products that those Instagram influencers use in 2-minute videos and call them life-changing? Hopefully not! (we hope you know that they are paid do say so). But social media influencing is a full-time career now and all thanks to the endless hours we spend on social media. Many of them are actually helping their audience with the right information while others are not good with the game.
Several times influencers end up crossing the line and becoming the talk of the town for the wrong reasons. As a result, they lose followers followers also.
Here are 5 such incidents when influencers were rightly criticised for their unexpected social media posts.
1. VIDEO IN FRONT OF FOREST FIRE
In a recent video going viral on social media, a Pakistani social media influencer with 11 million followers on TikTok can be seen walking in a silver-colour gown in front of a forest fire.
The forest fire was a result of the devastating heatwave in Pakistan.
Humaira Asghar is receiving criticism for making a TikTok video right in front of a burning hillside.
This tiktoker from Pakistan has set fire to the forest for 15 sec video.Government should make sure that culprits are punished and the tiktoker along with the brand should be penalised. #Pakistan #TikTok pic.twitter.com/76ad77ULdJ
— Discover Pakistan ?? | پاکستان (@PakistanNature) May 17, 2022
The caption of the video which reads, "Fire erupts wherever I am," is worth criticising.
The social media star later said in a statement that she "did not start the fire and there was no harm in making videos”.
“She should have been holding a bucket of water to extinguish the fire instead of glamorising it,” Rina Saeed Khan Satti, an environmental activist and chairperson of the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board told AFP.
2. FASHION INFLUENCER GIVING PROVIDING THERAPY
The pandemic forced people to stay inside the four walls. Mental health issues were on a rise when a fashion influencer decided she was going to 'help' people by providing them therapy sessions.
Santoshi Shetty started an initiative called Flying Cheese through which she was offering one-on-one therapy session and was charging Rs 1,500 for it. She was charging this to offer “positive vibes” and help people struggling with mental health issues.
So, basically, a non-professional decided to give therapy online in the middle of a pandemic.
Many mental health experts called her out and later she issued an apology.
An influencer wants to offer one-on-one sessions (PAID). What the hell is wrong with people? Do people realize that therapy is a science? Would you trust an influencer to be your doctor? It is because of shit like this that healers, charlatans are popping up everywhere to confuse
— Omar Bazza (@bazzapower) July 8, 2020
Wait so #santoshishetty, a FASHION BLOGGER who studied architecture, really started a whole venture where she is the ThErAPiSt and charges ₹1500 per session.Guess, she really believed in "you can be what you want to be".I'm- pic.twitter.com/aHkZJJXwep
— Rajvi⁷ ✘ (@RajviDesai31) July 7, 2020
The apology:
View this post on Instagram
3. PHOTOSHOOT AT DAD’S FUNERAL
In another incident, a Miami-based social media influencer received obvious backlash for posing with the casket at her father’s funeral.
Jayne Rivera posted pictures of her standing right in front of her father’s casket with the caption, “Butterfly fly away. Rip Papi, you were my best friend. A life well-lived”.
She later said that the photos were taken with the “best intentions”.
this Instagram model’s father passed away,,,, and she did a photo shoot with the open casket…. pic.twitter.com/u1EVNxaajz
— Mac McCann (@MacMcCannTX) October 26, 2021
4. POVERTY AS AN AESTHETIC
Indian influencer Nitibha Kaul was also criticised for posting pictures with poor people for a photoshoot for SabyasachiXHM collection.
She posted pictures of her in the new collection with poor people in the background.
The audacity of this influencer to wear a 10k saree & use poor people as background objects for it. Nitibha Kaul has a million followers & her entire page is full of using poor people as aesthetics. Are these people being paid a fair share of her money for collab? They better be pic.twitter.com/JB0S1yEA6t
— Sankul Sonawane (@Sankul333) August 15, 2021
Many called this photoshoot “disgusting” for using poor people as a prop or aesthetics.
These pictures were later taken down from the platform.
Absolutely disgusting. Using poor people as props and exploiting them, making poverty an aesthetic? Have some shame. pic.twitter.com/6j1n3jLOxx
— yeranxiousoomf (@canya_not) August 15, 2021
5. MRIDUL MADHOK
Shushant Singh Rajput's death in June 2020 left the entire nation in shock.
On the other hand, TikTok influencer Mridul Madhok posted a clickbait video and asked people to follow him on other social media platforms for more details about Shushant's death.
This video recieved a lot of criticism acorss all platforms for sensationalising a sensitive issue.
You can watch the video here.
Have you ever seen such posts? Tell us in the comments.