'R*PE kardenge, AC*D phek..': Shiny Doshi REVEALS 13-14 YO's were PAID to troll her during 'Pandya Store'

Actress Shiny Doshi, who is all set to entertain the audience with her upcoming stint in the TV show ‘Ishq Dum Aur Idli Rasam,’ recently opened up about a disturbing phase she experienced during her time on Pandya Store. Speaking to Film Window, the actress revealed that she received rape threats, death threats, and even acid attack threats during the show’s run. She further alleged that trolling in the entertainment industry is often organised and sometimes fuelled by insecurity among competitors.

Recalling the traumatic phase, Shiny shared, “I was playing Dhara and mera character aisa tha ki mujhe troll karne ki naubat waise aati nahi thi. But then, ya I mean, wo bhi ek daur tha jab maine seekha ki trolling karwayi jaati hai. Log ussi time seekh liya tha. That was my first time ever because I couldn’t understand ki main troll kyun ho rahi hoon. Mera toh character bhi bahut positive hai. Agar mera character negative hai ya main kuch galat kar rahi hoon kisi ke saath show mein ya outside and I am doing something, toh I understand also ki getting trolled.”

I was playing Dhara and mera character aisa tha ki mujhe troll karne ki naubat waise aati nahi thi. But then, ya I mean, wo bhi ek daur tha jab maine seekha ki trolling karwayi jaati hai. Log ussi time seekh liya tha. That was my first time ever because I couldn’t understand ki main troll kyun ho rahi hoon. Mera toh character bhi bahut positive hai. Agar mera character negative hai ya main kuch galat kar rahi hoon kisi ke saath show mein ya outside and I am doing something, toh I understand also ki getting trolled.

- Shiny Doshi

The actress went on to reveal the extent of abuse she faced online. “Mujhe toh itna troll kiya gaya tha ki mujhe bhi death threats, rape threats ye sab chithhiyon mein aate the. Aur uske baad, Main aur Simran rape aur death threats padh padh ke police station bhi gaye note karwane, cyber crime walon ke paas, ki we are getting lot of trolls. People are literally messaging us ki ‘hum aapka rape kar denge’, ‘agar aap raste pe dikh jaoge toh hum aap pe acid phenk denge’, ‘hum ye kar denge, wo kar denge.’'

Shiny further recalled approaching cyber crime officials for help but receiving little support initially. “So we went to cyber crime and we told them ke sir humko ye problem ho rahi hai. There was a lady constable, sorry, she said, ‘Sir aapka Instagram band kar do.’ Humne kaha hum actor hain, hum Instagram nahi band kar sakte. Hamari rozi roti hai. Hum paise kamate hain usse, hai na?”

Mujhe toh itna troll kiya gaya tha ki mujhe bhi death threats, rape threats ye sab chithhiyon mein aate the. Aur uske baad, Main aur Simran rape aur death threats padh padh ke police station bhi gaye note karwane, cyber crime walon ke paas, ki we are getting lot of trolls. People are literally messaging us ki ‘hum aapka rape kar denge’, ‘agar aap raste pe dikh jaoge toh hum aap pe acid phenk denge’, ‘hum ye kar denge, wo kar denge. So we went to cyber crime and we told them ke sir humko ye problem ho rahi hai. There was a lady constable, sorry, she said, ‘Sir aapka Instagram band kar do.’ Humne kaha hum actor hain, hum Instagram nahi band kar sakte. Hamari rozi roti hai. Hum paise kamate hain usse, hai na?

- Shiny Doshi

Explaining why quitting social media was never an option, the actress added, “There are certain people who don’t want to be so on social media, fair enough, it’s their choice. But just because people are giving me rape and death threats, I can’t just shut down my Instagram aur social media accounts, right? That’s my visibility. People know me from there.”

Shiny also revealed that neither she nor her co star received any major support while dealing with the situation. “So not that we got any major support. Humein koi aisa major support nahi mila. Main aur Simran ne ek doosre ki shakal dekhi aur humne kaha, ‘Yaar iska toh kuch nahi ho sakta.’”

There are certain people who don’t want to be so on social media, fair enough, it’s their choice. But just because people are giving me rape and death threats, I can’t just shut down my Instagram aur social media accounts, right? That’s my visibility. People know me from there. So not that we got any major support. Humein koi aisa major support nahi mila. Main aur Simran ne ek doosre ki shakal dekhi aur humne kaha, ‘Yaar iska toh kuch nahi ho sakta.

- Shiny Doshi

However, things eventually changed when someone from another cyber crime branch stepped in to help. “Then luckily somebody in cyber crime, not the same branch but another branch, in a helping hand type of way, tried to help me out. Because maine saari cheezein post karna start kar diya tha. I started calling out people on my social media that this is what has been happening and guys can you stop doing this.”

The actress revealed that one of the accounts sending the most severe threats was eventually traced. “So some random lady messaged me and she said, ‘Shiny, I can help you out.’ Aur usmein se jo sabse major rape aur death threats jis account se aa rahe the, uska account maine bhej diya. Aur pata chala ek chhota sa bachcha Delhi mein baith ke ye sab kar raha tha. I think they were 13, 14, 15, maybe 15 to 16 saal ke bachche.”

Expressing her shock, she added, “Oh God, those were the kids who were sending me rape and death threats. Aur bas, ek ke ghar ka address nikla toh baaki sab automatically band ho gaye.”

Then luckily somebody in cyber crime, not the same branch but another branch, in a helping hand type of way, tried to help me out. Because maine saari cheezein post karna start kar diya tha. I started calling out people on my social media that this is what has been happening and guys can you stop doing this. Aur usmein se jo sabse major rape aur death threats jis account se aa rahe the, uska account maine bhej diya. Aur pata chala ek chhota sa bachcha Delhi mein baith ke ye sab kar raha tha. I think they were 13, 14, 15, maybe 15 to 16 saal ke bachche. Oh God, those were the kids who were sending me rape and death threats. Aur bas, ek ke ghar ka address nikla toh baaki sab automatically band ho gaye

- Shiny Doshi

While Shiny refused to take names, she strongly hinted that organised trolling exists in the industry. “Toh unko paise diye jaate the ya paid… you know, I would not want to get into it too much because trolling karwayi jaati hai. Aapko troll karwaya jaata hai. Toh aapke competitors jo aapse insecure feel karte hain wo karwate hain. Could be. I would not want to take any names, but I experienced it in life. I have experienced it.”

Toh unko paise diye jaate the ya paid… you know, I would not want to get into it too much because trolling karwayi jaati hai. Aapko troll karwaya jaata hai. Toh aapke competitors jo aapse insecure feel karte hain wo karwate hain. Could be. I would not want to take any names, but I experienced it in life. I have experienced it.

- Shiny Doshi

She concluded by saying that such incidents are not limited to reality television alone. “Reality shows mein toh ye sab hota hi hai, but maine ye fiction mein bhi dekh liya aur non fiction mein bhi. Fiction mein bhi hota hai.”