Responses of Taapsee Pannu and Swara Bhasker after Kangana Called Them B-Grade Actresses

Rising tensions between actresses Kangana Ranaut and Taapsee Pannu is simmering over the social media sites with Swara Bhasker also taking a leading role. It all started with Kangana declaring her fellow actresses as “needy outsiders” and “B-grade actresses” while appearing on a news channel. This is what Taapsee Pannu and Swara Bhasker had to say in return.

Taapsee Pannu and Swara Bhasker

Swara Bhasker replied on Twitter, as did Taapsee Pannu, and called Kangana Ranaut’s remarks as “disheartening.” Maybe necessarily, social media has taken sides – #NationStandsWithKangana has been trending on Twitter all day; support for Taapsee and Swara have flooded in from various quarters, including reporters and some Bollywood voices.

First, here’s what Kangana Ranaut said about nepotism in the Bollywood industry and actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death last month, supposedly by suicide: “I only have to lose here, because tomorrow they (referring to the ‘movie mafia’) will get some 20 needy outsiders like Taapsee Pannu and Swara Bhasker who will say ‘oh only Kangana has a problem with Karan Johar, but we love Karan Johar.’ If you love Karan Johar, why are you both B-grade actresses? You are better looking than Alia Bhatt and Ananya, you both are better actors, why don’t you get work? Your presence is evidence of nepotism. What are you showing me how happy you are with this industry?”

Taapsee Pannu and Swara Bhasker were quick to reply with mocking tweets:

Taapsee said, “It’s disheartening to see someone making a mockery out of outsiders and the industry that has given us so much. Imagine the parents whose kids are coming into the industry. What will they think of us? Like we are some nasty evil people sitting here to eat outsiders?”

Swara’s Twitter is filled with retweets of people who have weighed in, like director Anubhav Sinha, and also posts such as this one: