Olympians Bindra, Gutta respond to Shobhaa De’s controversial ‘Rio jao, Selfies lo’ tweet

Despite sending the biggest contingent for the ongoing Rio Olympics, the performance of Indian sportspersons has been a tad bit disappointing so far.

While no Indian sportsperson has completely dominated any event yet, the Olympics is far from over. In fact one of the most anticipated events, the vault final featuring gymnast Dipa Karmakar, is something millions are eagerly waiting for. Karmakar recently created history after becoming the first Indian gymnast to qualify for the Olympics after a gap of 52 years.

But, as often is the case with sporting events, below par performances bring out either the best or worst in fans, and Olympics is no exception to the rule. While many continue to support the sportspersons irrespective of their performance, there are also those who have resorted to criticizing and ridiculing their efforts.

Prominent columnist and novelist, Shobhaa De, was one such fan who criticized the Indian contingent for their failure to secure a single medal. The columnist, who was rooting for gold medalist Abhinav Bindra as India’s best chance of securing a medal once again, took to her micro-blogging account after the shooter finished 4th in the 10m Air Rifle event.

A seemingly disappointed De, tweeted, “Goal of Team India at the Olympics: Rio jao. Selfies lo. Khaali haat wapas aao. What a waste of money and opportunity.”

Following the 68-year-old’s tweet, Olympians Abhinav Bindra (shooting), Jwala Gutta (badminton) and Somdev Devvarman (tennis) took to their respective accounts and responded to De’s sharp criticism of Indian athletes.

@DeShobhaa that’s a tad unfair. You should be
proud of your athletes perusing human excellence against the whole world.

— Abhinav
Bindra (@Abhinav_Bindra) August 9,
2016

@DeShobhaa maybe things will change when the attitude
of people like urself change!!!!?? #Proudindian #proudsportsperson

— Gutta Jwala (@Guttajwala) August 8, 2016

@DeShobhaa a little harsh to belittle the hard work
put in by our athletes …don’t you think ?

— Somdev Devvarman (@SomdevD) August 8, 2016

Those who follow De on the micro-blogging platform would know that this isn’t the first time the author, who is known for her bold and unabashed statements, has stoked controversy with her tweets.