Samantha Ruth Prabhu is currently basking in the success of her latest project, ‘Citadel: Honey Bunny’ with Varun Dhawan. The ‘Kushi’ actress recently addressed the hate comments she received in 2021 following her divorce from Naga Chaitanya. During the time, several social media users hurled abuses at Samantha. However, she chose to remain silent about the lies being spewed about her.
Recently, in her interview with Galatta India, Samantha addressed the issues faced by women in inherently patriarchal societies. While divorce involves two parties, Samantha faced the bulk of criticism and abuse. The actress emphasised the harsh truth of women facing scrutiny and judgements if a relationship doesn’t work out. “Unfortunately, we live in a society which is so patriarchal in nature, that anytime something goes wrong, a woman gets subjected to… I’m not saying men don’t, men do, but a woman gets subjected to a lot more judgment and a lot more shaming, not just online, even in real life.”
Samantha also opened up about the lies that spreading about her that culminated in a row of online abuse. “Many things were said about me that were absolutely untrue. But what held me back, I remember having this conversation with myself when things were really, really crappy and they were really, really… absolute lies were being spread. And there were many times when I wanted to come out and say, this is not true, let me tell you the truth.”
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As the conversation progressed, the star revealed her rationality behind not addressing the rumours floating around her. The actress prioritised her mental sanity and didn’t give in to something that would do no good. “You gain a bunch of people who are so fickle, they may love you for a minute, and then maybe like three days later, you do something stupid and they go back to hating you again,” she said. Ultimately, she found peace in keeping her truth within her circle. “Can you not live with the fact that your friends and your family know the truth? And it’s okay. If people think that you think all of these things that are not true about you, isn’t it okay? It’s fine.”
Additionally, the ‘Oo Antava’ star reflected on the innate desire to seek public validation and the importance of learning to embrace oneself without approval. “All my life I wanted to be loved and validated and appreciated. It’s okay. So yeah, I mean, I still haven’t said anything. So, whoever believes, whatever they believe, it’s up to them.”
Samantha Ruth Prabhu and Naga Chaitanya tied the knot in 2017 and parted ways in 2021. Moving ahead, Chaitanya is gearing up to exchange vows with ‘Made in Heaven’ actress Sobhita Dhulipala. After dating for a while, the couple had their engagement ceremony in August, this year.