New Delhi: Actor Babil Khan has joined the long list of celebrities who have criticised Poonam Pandey for faking her death. The official Instagram handle of Poonam Pandey posted a statement on Friday announcing that the actor has died due to cervical cancer. On Saturday, Poonam posted a video and shared that she is alive and the intention behind the stunt was to spread awareness about cervical cancer.
Babil, who lost his father Irrfan Khan to a neuroendocrine tumour (NED) a rare form of cancer, expressed his anger at Poonam’s stunt through a note on his Instagram Stories.
"I don't know what the f**k that was about Poonam Pandey's demise, but it just feels wrong. I'm trying not to care but it is making me feel really angry. Awareness can be spread, faking statements of death should not be something that we rely upon to do so as individuals in a collective society," he wrote.
"Bro long story short, this is the worst way to raise awareness about cancer and my intuition roars, sensing malice. PLEASE DONT F*** WITH CANCER AWARENESS," he added.
Irrfan Khan passed away in 2020.
Poonam’s stunt drew severe criticism from celebrities and internet users calling it disgraceful and cheap.
Poonam also posted a video apologising to people. She said, “Hi everyone it's Poonam. I am sorry to those whom I have hurt. My intention is to shock everyone into the conversation that we are not talking enough about cervical cancer.”
“Yes, I faked my demise.”
She added: “Extreme I know. But suddenly we all are talking about cervical cancer. This disease silently takes your life and this disease needs the spotlight urgently. I am proud of what my death news has been able to achieve.”
Poonam also went live on Instagram and spoke about her decision and people’s reaction.
She said, “I did not make any money out of it. It was purely for a cause. Nobody was willing to take this campaign. I know it was extreme, I sincerely apologise. I am glad that since yesterday all I am reading about is cervical cancer. My message has reached right. Every person in India is aware about cervical cancer.”
“It’s a terrible feeling. I am shivering right now. My friends are very angry, and don’t know if they will even talk to me. My PR team had no clue where I was, I went underground,” she said on live.