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What counts in a crisis is information one can use immediately: Celebs on helping people on social media
Shefali Shah, Mini Mathur, Shruti Haasan, Shrenu Parikh, Eijaz Khan and Karan Wahi talk about the challenges they face while lending a hand for Covid relief and the downside of helping on social media.
When the second wave hit the country, many people reached out to help. Celebrities, too, are doing their bit by amplifying requests for Covid relief on their social media pages. They ask their followers for help, post leads from their own sources and spread verified information. Many have become part of a process to verify leads and help people in need who reached out with a solution. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t. Celebs admit they face many challenges and have seen the downside of helping on social media.
Actor Karan Wahi became an integral part of the Healing with Humanity campaign and has been posting relentlessly online. Yet people have been pulling him down. He shares, “I got comments like ‘Your social media handle looks like a Covid form. Why are you posting just about Covid?’ Do people expect fancy things or happy pics? I am not happy. I am fortunate I am famous, so why can’t I use my reach to help people?”
For actor Shrenu Parikh, it started off with posting requests but soon she became a part of a Covid-19 volunteer’s group. “I met some amazing people and was able to help a few. Twitter helped a lot!! The downside on helping on social media is the time limit! With exhausted resources, some cases would be so hopeless that even after doing everything, people didn’t survive which affected the people who tried to help! There are volunteers on ground who have lost their loved ones yet are helping others. Moreover, there have been fake cases and there’s no demarcation of emergency, urgent and what-can-wait kind of cases. Few people misbehave with female volunteers too,” she says.
As bad as things have been Shruti Haasan admits that people are being compassionate and social media helped in spreading the word. “Social media is a wonderful tool to connect with people and if used well, it helps. I was happy to help and share leads and requests for beds, oxygen, medicines etc. But one has to be careful as there is a lot of unverified stuff on social media like requests to transfer money to accounts without enough details,” she says.
The actor sticks to verified sources and shares information of NGOs already working on ground. She has been amplifying posts of Where Are India’s Children as she was concerned about the many messages floating around about adopting orphaned kids. “My virtual family helped out in verifying requests and leads. For every person, who was selling fake medicines or black marketing, there were as many people bringing it to attention online, which proves how wonderful people have been.”
Actor Shefali Shah says she isn’t just creating awareness but trying to find a solution to help people “who needed it right then”. “When time is paramount, the point is to give an answer and that’s what we tried to do. We have a bank of leads, volunteers who help out when I get a request. Out of 300-400 messages I get daily, we have been able to sort 3-4. It is a small number but the need is massive, so if we can help some, it’s great. For the first time, I am finding social media useful. Last month, it was 100 requests a day for beds, medicine and oxygen and now requests have reduced. Now they are about plasma, medicines, queries on black fungus and blood. But when I hear that we tried yet someone lost their life, it really affects you. Makes one question, what am I even doing? Is it helping? The downside is that people think I am an ad company and ask to post irrelevant stuff.”
Host Mini Mathur feels everyone who is helping counts, yet one can only help so many people in one day. “What counts in a crisis is information one can use immediately. So when someone reaches out to you, you need to be able to verify, and deliver a solution. Time is of the essence. I have woken people up at 4.30am for ambulances. Once I was up till 3am trying to get an ambulance, but just as it arrived, the person passed away. People think you are celeb, you must be forgetting after posting. But it was tough not to be able to help some, it breaks you,” she says, adding that one of her friends has put her staff for Covid-19 helplines and they verify information which can be passed on to people at the right time.
While actor Eijaz Khan is glad that people are trying to help each other, he has been questioned about numbers not working. “Sometimes the leads are verified, at other times, they are not. In the interim, critical patients lose time. People in turn have reacted saying numbers you posted aren’t working. But we are actors, not part of the system or govt, so there is only so much we can do. Yet when a few leads work out, it makes it all worth it,” he explains.
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