Actress and model Areeba Habib has defended celebrating Diwali as netizens train guns at her for participating in the Hindu festival earlier this month.
As per the details, Areeba celebrated Diwali with friends, including famous designer and actor Deepak Perwani, and shared pictures from the event on her social media accounts, drawing strong reactions from fans.
Appearing as a guest on After Hours with Ushna Shah, Areeba addressed the backlash she faced.
“Recently, I posted something and received a lot of backlash. It was about Diwali. I feel like we live in a country where people from many different backgrounds live… Christians, obviously Hindus, and all of us together. There are so many things we share culturally,” she said.
Defending her decision, Areeba said that celebrating someone else’s joy shouldn’t be controversial.
“If you go and participate in someone’s happiness and enjoy with them a little, what’s wrong with that? They don’t have anyone here. They are far away from their families and loved ones. For them, this is home. We are the ones who can make them feel included. And yet, people have a problem with this,” the Jalan actress said.
She also revealed how she celebrated Christmas with her Christian staff and decorated a Christmas tree at home. “I do it because a lot of my staffers are Christian. I celebrate with them too… I put up a Christmas tree at home. Even for that, people have things to say. I believe we are Muslims, Alhamdulillah, but as human beings, we should at least respect and celebrate others’ happiness. Nobody is telling you to convert or do anything drastic… just participate in their joy.”
Areeba also addressed the negative comments she often receives online, sharing how she has learned to deal with trolls.
“As parents, it’s our responsibility to teach our kids that if you can’t say something nice to someone, then don’t say anything at all. My brother once told me, ‘Think of them as people who are venting their frustrations because they have nothing else to do.’ These people have cheap internet packages in Pakistan. They get a package for 200 or 100 rupees and just spend their time trolling online. That becomes their achievement… to get a reply from public figures like us. When we reply, they feel like they’ve accomplished something major. They feel victorious, thinking they’ve taught us a lesson,” she said.
To a question about how important it was to have a mentor or someone who guides you in the industry, Areeba said it was crucial because if someone brought you into the industry and taught you a little, it gave you a good direction to proceed.
“As a new person, when you enter, you have no idea whom to talk to or what to say. Half the time, people assume you’re begging for work. But I don’t see anything wrong with asking for work. Asking for work is a good thing. It’s saying, ‘I have talent, I can do this, please check if I’m suitable.’ This used to happen a lot more in the past. Back then, we had people like Frieha Altaf and many others who would provide such guidance,” she said.