Aidaah Sheikh calls out ‘cyber-bully casters’ over body-shaming

Influencer and lifestyle creator Aidaah Sheikh took to Instagram to call out 'haters' on social media, calling them “cyber-bully casters.”

Sheikh posted a video on her Instagram titled “To whom it may concern,” in which she shared her thoughts on people who body-shame women on social media, emphasising that they are inflicted with self-hatred.

“These are not podcasters, they are cyber-bully casters,” she said. “We live in a society where a person might or might not have etiquette, an education, money or credibility, but they always have an opinion,” she added.

Sheikh acknowledged that people were entitled to their views but argued that freedom of expression had its limits when comments became harmful. “Freedom of opinion and expression is good, but there has to be a boundary, as long as it is not harming anybody.”

Using body-shaming as an example, she argued that comments targeting someone’s appearance could not simply be dismissed as an opinion.

“If you say your opinion through body-shaming and harassment, that cannot be normalised. An opinion is to say you do not like to eat burgers, but to say someone else can’t eat it because they are fat is not an opinion. That is body-shaming.”

Sheikh then pointed to what she described as a wider pattern of men feeling entitled to comment on women’s appearances.“I read on the internet that all men have this audacity, and there are live examples,” she said.

She linked her argument to a recent example involving businessman Avinash Singh Rathore, who said Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif “is finished” because she had gained some weight after pregnancy.

“A 20,000-earning man says to a 4,000-crore company owner that ‘she is finished’ all because she has gained a little weight. She has stayed fit all her life,” Sheikh said.

She went on to question the credibility of people who use microphones and social media platforms to make such remarks.

“I think we should show these kinds of people a mirror, day and night, and show them their bank account details so they stare at both those things. Every unemployed man with a mic is not a podcaster,” the influencer said.

For Sheikh, the issue went beyond online criticism, with the negativity directed at others reflecting the insecurities of those making the comments.

“At the end of the day, everyone should show some human decency. If you are really hating on someone, that means you hate yourself so much that you are putting it on others. As a secure human being, when I see hate towards others, I always think about the one hating, not the one being hated on,” she said.

She summed up her point with a simple message: “Happy people aren’t hating, and hating people aren’t happy.”

“In short, you are exposing yourself. I want to ask all public figures, whether you have a large following or a little one. I urge all of you to block such people and make sure you report them,” she concluded.