Ushna Shah poses with her husband Hamza Amin for a picture on her wedding. — Ushna Shah/ Instagram video screengrab
Pakistani actor Ushna Shah, who has been in the limelight lately following her marriage with Pakistani golfer Hamza Amin, announced taking a break from social media due to online trolling over her wedding dress, and later deactivated her Instagram account on Wednesday.
“I haven’t reacted to online trolling for years, but I am a human being at a very vulnerable time of my life. A new bride in a new home,” said the celebrity, taking to her Instagram stories.
Shah had become a target of online bashing as soon as her wedding pictures surfaced, as people criticised her for her choice of bridal dress and for dancing at her own wedding.
She apologised to critics who said that the actress was promoting Indian culture, however, expressing anger and sadness over trolling and a privacy breach at her wedding.
“From hiring photography teams who signed NDAs to hiring security and strict guest lists at the door, I wanted to protect our union and only share what I was comfortable with, I worked very hard to make this time private. Several people invaded that privacy to exploit our happy occasion, including disrupting our nikkah,” Ushna wrote on her story.
She said that she was mortified as any bride would be. She said that she had a human moment and she reacted.
“I exposed the first person I learnt invaded my privacy, I defended myself, I even retracted because they apologised, and I learnt others were also involved, in worse ways, and because the damage done to me couldn’t be undone either way.”
Ushna further said that she did not get married to offend Pakistani culture as it was not her intention to do so. “If that is what people feel I have done then I apologise for letting anyone down.”
She announced that she will not be using Instagram for a few days for her mental health. She added that she wants to spend this time with her husband and new family.
“I am also questioning if I am cut out for this job,” she wrote. The actor later deactivated her Instagram account.
