Bollywood actress Sonakshi Sinha recites poem in support of farmers
'Nazarein milake, khud se poocho - kyun?'
Mumbai, Feb 11: Doubling down on her support to the farmers protesting against the three agri laws passed by the Centre, actor Sonakshi Sinha has narrated a heartfelt poem, described as a "tribute to the hands that feed us".
The 33-year-old actor, who first expressed solidarity with the farmers last week, shared a video on Instagram on Wednesday evening to share her thoughts about the protesting farmers.
The 1 minute 19 second-long clip captures the visuals of the distressed farmers, who have gathered at various border points of Delhi since November last year as part of their protest against the Centre's farm laws.
According to Sinha, the Hindi poem was penned by Varad Bhatnagar, and the video was shot and conceptualised by Gursanjam Singh Puri.
"Nazarein milake, khud se poocho - kyun? A tribute to the hands that feed us... a beautiful poem written by @varadbhatnagar. Shot and conceptualized by @gursanjam.s.puri and narrated by me. #farmersprotest," she captioned the post.
"Why? Everybody is asking this question. Why have we got down on the roads? Leaving behind the fields, why have we stepped into these cities? These hands that would once plow the fields why have we now got into this politics?" Sinha asks as she recites the poem in the video.
She further questioned why the elders and children, who are out on the roads to protest, are labelled as rioters.
"Do they look like rioters? Why? Can't they all ask for their own rights? Why? Everyone enjoys the meal that we all have can't we all stand for them? Why? Ask yourself, why?" the actor asks as she urges people to show solidarity with the farmers.
Sinha first voiced her views on the ongoing agitation after international pop singer Rihanna drew attention to the protests via her now viral tweet.
"Why aren't we talking about this? #FarmersProtest," Rihanna wrote on February 2 as she shared a CNN news report headlined, 'India cuts internet around New Delhi as protesting farmers clash with police.'
Days after Rihanna's tweet, Sinha shared quotes on her Instagram Stories from a page called storysellers comics, which said the voices raised by international celebrities are "about the violation of human rights, suppression of free internet and expression, state propaganda, hate speech, and abuse of power."
Last week, the government had criticised the tweets by Rihanna and other international celebrities, saying facts must be ascertained before people rushing to comment on the issue, calling it "neither accurate nor responsible".
One of the Stories on Sinha's profile also dismissed the argument that it was India's internal matter, saying, "these are not alien species but fellow humans who are speaking up for the rights of other humans."
The "Dabangg" actor is among few celebrities from Bollywood including Taapsee Pannu, Richa Chadha, Swara Bhasker, Ali Fazal, Sushant Singh, among others, who have been actively participating in the discourse around the farm bills.
Thousands of farmers have been camping at Delhi's borders since November demanding the repeal of three new agriculture laws that they say will end the minimum support price (MSP) based procurement of crops like wheat and paddy by the government and usher in big corporates into the farm sector.
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Social media ban for children under 16 starts in Australia
Melbourne(Australia) (AP): Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese welcomed a world-first social media ban for children younger than 16 that took effect Wednesday as families taking back power from tech giants but warned the implementation would be difficult.
Parents reported distraught children discovering they'd been shut out of platforms as the landmark law took effect. Some young children reported fooling the platforms' age estimation technology by drawing on facial hair. Parents and older siblings are also expected to help some children circumvent the restrictions.
“This is the day when Australian families are taking back power from these big tech companies and they're asserting the right of kids to be kids and for parents to have greater peace of mind,” Albanese told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.
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“This reform will change lives. For Australian kids ... allowing them to just have their childhood. For Australian parents, enabling them to have greater peace of mind. But also for the global community, who are looking at Australia and saying: well, if Australia can do it, why can't we?” Albanese later told a Sydney gathering of reform supporters, including parents who blame social media for a child's suicide.
Facebook, Instagram, Kick, Reddit, Snapchat, Threads, TikTok, X, YouTube and Twitch face fines of up to 49.5 million Australian dollars (USD 32.9 million) from Wednesday if they fail to take reasonable steps to remove the accounts of Australian children younger than 16.
Australia to report by Christmas if social media ban is working
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The ban will be enforced by Australia's eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant. She said the platforms already had the technology and personal data about their users to enforce the age restriction with precision.
She would send the 10 targeted platforms on Thursday notices demanding information on how the age restriction was being implemented and how many accounts had been closed.
“We will provide information to the public before Christmas on how these age restrictions are being implemented and whether preliminarily we see them working,” Inman Grant said.
“The responses to these notices will form the baseline against which we will measure compliance,” she added.
Communications Minister Anika Wells said the age-restricted platforms “may not agree with the law and that's their right — we don't expect 100 per cent universal support," but that all had undertaken to comply with the Australian law. She said more than 200,000 TikTok accounts in Australia had already been deactivated by Wednesday.
Wells also warned young children who had so far evaded detection that they would eventually be caught. A child who used a virtual private network to appear to be in Norway would be caught out if they were routinely posting images of Australian beaches, Wells said.
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“Just because they might have avoided it (detection) today doesn't mean they will be able to avoid it in a week's time or a month's time because social media platforms have to go back and routinely check under-16 accounts,” Wells said.
“These social media platforms have so much data on us because we choose to give it to them because we like social media and because you've had your older brother scan their face for you today, which has bought you a bit of time, doesn't mean that these accounts aren't going to see you talking to other 14-year-olds tonight about the under-16 soccer carnival on weekend, about your upcoming school holidays and what your Year 10 teacher is next year,” she added.
Albanese said the implementation would be difficult and “won't be perfect.”
“This is about, importantly, pushing back against big tech, saying that social media companies have a social responsibility,” he said.
Father of sextortion scam victim says social media ban is a start
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Wayne Holdsworth, who became an age restriction advocate because his son Mac took his own life after falling victim to an online sextortion scam, described the new law as a start. Children must now be educated about online dangers before they turn 16.
“Our kids that we've lost haven't died in vain because today they'll be looking down very proud of the work that we've all done,” Holdsworth told the Sydney gathering.
Flossie Brodribb, a 12-year-old advocate for a social media ban for young children, told the gathering she hoped other countries would follow Australia's lead.
“This ban is bold and brave and I believe it will help kids like me to grow up healthier, safer, kinder and more connected to the real world,” Flossie said.
Simone Clements said the social media ban would come at a financial cost to her 15-year-old twins Carlee and Hayden Clements. Carlee is an actor, model, dancer, singer and influencer. Her brother is an actor and model.
“I know that our situation is unique to our family because the kids are in the entertainment industry and social media goes hand-in-hand with the entertainment industry. We have used social media in the most positive way. And it's a platform for them to basically show their portfolio, and … this is an income stream for the children,” the mother told ABC.
Clements said the biggest impact on her children would be the loss of their young followers online.
