Actor Nishant Dahiya, who was recently see playing a misogynist husband in Sanya Malhotra's much-talked-about film, Mrs, has now revealed how he has been at the receiving end of hate and a barrage of abusive messages ever since the film released. He added that he was surprised to see most of the abuse came not from women, but from men.
The film tells the tale of an ambitious, young woman who gets married into a staunch patriarchal family, and how she finally manages to break the shackles of the society and give it back to them. In the film, Nishant is seen playing Sanya's husband, and many found his toxic and misogynist character "triggering".
Nishant told Hindustan Times that while he knew Mrs would hit a nerve with the Indian audience, he never thought it would receive such widespread acclaim and will become the talk of the town. And along with the love, a lot of hate also came the actor's way, with men even going to the extent of asking him to "die".
"I have got such lovely messages from women who have told me that they hate my character Diwakar but they really appreciate my work. But the most extreme reactions I have gotten are from men! Men have texted me saying, ‘You dumb***k actor, go and eat rat poison! Die somewhere, you mother****er!'," Nishant revealed.
He went on to say that he would have understood if the reaction came from women, but he was surprised to see men react to his character that way. "I think it is more about Diwakar, something they did not like about Diwakar and it touched a nerve in them somewhere," he said.
Mrs also stars veteran actor Kanwaljit Singh, who plays the role of Sanya's father-in-law. Post the film's release, he too had revealed how he felt horrible after watching the entire film and how he had apologised to Sanya, as he felt guilty.
