The mother of all backfire effect landed on poor Asha Sharath when the actress released a video on Facebook on 3 July, looking absolutely distraught and pleading for help from her fans to 'locate her missing husband, Zachariah.'

The less-than-a-minute clip looks genuine, which is a credit to Asha's great acting skill but if anyone were to continue watching to the end of the clip, they would realise that it is actually a promotional clip for the actress' film "Evidey" directed by KK Rajeev whose character searches for her missing husband too.

Too much of a good thing isn't actually good and Asha's convincing acting had gotten the video 1.5 million views in less than a week, most of the viewers erroneously assuming the video was real.

When the public realised that her husband was not in any danger, they turned against her and accused her of misleading them! And what a backlash it was...

On Saturday, the actress sent a complaint to state DGP Lokanath Behera, alleging that she was being bullied and harassed online for the video. She told reporters that the version of the video uploaded through her Facebook page on 3 July had a hard-to-miss caption that said that it was a promotional video for the film "Evidey".

"This was purely for promotional purposes. It was not intended to mislead anyone. Even if people who love me thought it was real, they would not have showered me with abuse. People who love us will never abuse us. That's the difference. My apology is not for those who harassed me online," Asha Sharath said.

The actress and the film's makers have also complained that some people had edited the clip to make it look real and shared the video on several social media platforms.

The filmmakers have also come up with a statement condemning the cyber-abuse against Asha.

"As a very committed and experienced artist, Ms Asha has been highly supportive of the project and it is really unacceptable and unfortunate that some people online are misusing the same by editing the credits part of it and circulating the same in alternate social media platforms. We had taken all necessary steps required and had ensured that the content in no way breaks the norms of online communication or create any negative impact. We have obliged to all the online etiquettes and have ensured that we follow all the norms and regulations," it said.

"Evidey", written by Bobby-Sanjay and directed by KK Rajeev, stars Asha Sharath, Manoj K Jayan, Prem Prakash and Suraj Venjaaramoodu in pivotal roles. Manoj plays Zachariah who goes missing and his wife, played by Asha, goes looking for him. The film was released on 5 July.

Source: MSN
Photo Credit: Times of India