The Rebel Kid and the Irony of Outrage: When Morality Masks Misogyny

Apoorva recently made her return to Instagram with two powerful posts. She had previously removed all her previous posts.

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A post shared by Apoorva (@the.rebel.kid)

The first post, shared with a trigger warning, features 19 screenshots documenting the barrage of sexual violence threats and character attacks she received — with the caption “that’s not even 1%.”

The second post featured just one line, which said, “Don’t take away the story from the storyteller,” and didn’t come with a caption.

We explore this further to examine why women are subjected to a large amount of disproportionate hate online, and how this isn't an isolated incident.

Apoorva, aka The Rebel Kid’s Participation in India’s Got Latent

In the aftermath of the show landing in soup, FIRs were filed against the host, Samay Raina, and participants Allahbadia and Apoorva, among others. Apoorva was also accused of making an objectionable comment on the show.

Read:Over Half of Married Indians Cheat: Why Many Are Questioning Monogamy

During one of the episodes of the show in February, a contestant commented, “Vagina mein sensation khatam ho gaya hai, (is there no sensation in your vagina” Apoorva replied, “Kabhi vagina dekhi hai maa se nikalne ke baad? (have you ever seen a vagina after coming out of your mother's).”

The show was known to have repeatedly featured obscene jokes and comments, and this wasn’t the first or only time.

The contestant’s remark hardly received the attention her retort did. What followed was a barrage of rape threats, name-calling, abuses and more, as she showed in her post.

Accountability vs Misplaced Outrage

Holding creators with influence accountable is important, but how we do it matters just as much.

Can the critique feature such vile abuse? How ironic is it that the answer to profanity, according to the internet, is to further a culture of sexual violecne through rape threats?

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If the intent is to stand against offensive content, how does that align with vile, dehumanizing threats? What does that say about our collective values? Lastly, while we rarely bat so much of an eyelid towards a man using profane language, as has been the case in several comedy shows, including Raina’s previous shows – the outrage and hate directed when a woman does it is much worse.

Cyberbullying and the Disproportionate Hate Towards Women

According to NCRB data, cases of cyberstalking or bullying of women or children increased by 36%, from 542 in 2017 to 739 in 2018.

Women online bear the brunt of disproportionate hate. This instance is only another chilling reminder of what it’s like to be an outspoken woman with an internet following.

Kusha Kapila faced it in the aftermath of her separation, where both parties said that the end of their marriage was consensual, but there was one clear villain. Mohini Dey found herself being baselessly linked to AR Rahman following the announcement of his separation. Rana Ayyub, a journalist, has routinely been targetted online, with even her number being leaked and a deekfake pornographic video being shared one time. Fat-shaming, slut-shaming are common for creators and actors choosing to live their lives unapologetically.

Online, in today's age, a woman having to deal with misogyny under the guise of outrage is a commonplace experience.