Vidya Balan is a much loved Bollywood star who has
several fans around the world. Selfie-seekers gather around her every time she
steps out in public and the actress is always ready to greet them with a smile.
But things took an ugly turn recently
when a man walked up to Vidya at the Kolkata Airport.
A few days ago, Vidya was in Kolkata
with her Begum Jaan producer Mahesh Bhatt and director Srijit Mukherj and
the trio were walking in to the airport when the man approached her and asked
if he could click a selfie with her.
As soon as Vidya said ‘Yes’, the man
immediately put his arm around her.
Vidya was shocked and immediately told
him “Don’t”. But he did not let go and continued holding onto Vidya at which
point her manager stepped in and told him, ‘Please, don’t do that.’
He removed his hand and held out his
phone but as soon as Vidya turned her face toward the camera for the third
time, she again felt a hand on her back.
And with that, the usually soft-spoken
Vidya lost her cool.
She turned around and screamed, “What do
you think you are doing? This is wrong.”
The man still had the cheek to ask: ‘Can I have a selfie?’
Vidya told him off in a loud voice, ‘No
you can’t, behave yourself!”
Vidya walked away from the scene. Bhatt was startled but happy to see that
Vidya gave it back to the offender.
Realising that Vidya's alarm could gather a crowd, the
man beat a hasty retreat.
We spoke to Vidya about the incident and
the anger was evident in her voice when she said, “When a stranger puts an arm
around you, be it a man or a woman you get uncomfortable because they are
intruding into your personal space.”
“We are public figures, not public
property,” Vidya asserted.
Thumbnail image Source: hdpics/dabboo ratnani/images