Devotion Under Fire: The Cost of a Handshake

The venomous backlash against Tanikella Bharani’s recent social media post is a disturbing reminder of how narrow our digital tolerance has become. For a man who has spent decades exploring the depths of Sivatatvam and the nuances of Telugu literature, expressing personal admiration through a spiritual lens is not just a right, it is a reflection of his identity. Yet, the moment he drew a parallel between a political leader and spiritual icons, the internet abandoned civility for character assassination.

Criticism is a fair game, but the personal attacks targeting a veteran artist of his stature are nothing short of a digital witch hunt. In our rush to judge, we have forgotten that admiration is inherently subjective. For Bharani, the meeting at Begumpet Airport wasn’t just a political encounter; it was an emotional experience he described with poetic fervor. Whether one agrees with his analogy or not, dragging an eighty-year-old legend through the mud for his personal convictions is a pathetic low for social media discourse.

It is high time we stop demanding that every individual’s personal feelings align with a specific political agenda. If a person chooses to find inspiration in a leader, that is their prerogative. The obsession with canceling anyone who steps outside a perceived ideological line only serves to stifle the creative and spiritual freedom we claim to protect. There are far more pressing societal issues to worry about than a poet’s choice of words in a moment of personal joy.