Brand Sania takes a beating

When the girl next door fell in love with the boy from across the border, some people thought she’d gone too far, but with the events that have transpired in the last few days, Hyderabadi youngsters rue that this youth icon has compromised on ‘Brand Sania’. While the young woman with the exemplary personal and professional record ‘stood by her man’, her fans believe she has diluted her professional persona and garnered negative attention.

Sure, they say, everyone must accept a potential partner’s past but the current debacle only shows the need to draw a line in every relationship. Sania may have walked into this relationship with eyes open, but she has been dragged in willy-nilly to deal with Shoaib’s unkempt baggage.

Ashmita Das, a research scholar, says, “There is no reason for a girl as independent and respected as Sania to stand by meekly and watch the fiasco around her. It is not just her career or her flagging reputation that should make her take a stand but because as an individual she deserves more respect. Whether it’s her or anyone else, self-respect is crucial. She should ask herself whether the guy would have stood by her if the tables were turned and her past was so murky.”

“Carrying a partner’s emotional and psychological baggage is all right as long as there is complete honesty between the couple. If that is missing, no relationship is worth it,” says Deepti Kumar, who works in a publishing firm, “It is a fact that Sania is getting a raw deal from every quarter. How can any relationship be built on lies? Now it seems that Shoaib is hedging for too long. Sania should probably demand he come clean about all his past activities before agreeing to marry him.”

Dhruv Kapoor, a public relations professional, however, feels that it is a personal issue and should be left to the couple to sort out, “It is true that honesty is essential when it comes to any relationship. But in Sania and Shoaib’s case, you don’t know what went on behind closed doors. Sania probably knew of Shoaib’s past and stood by him to help him save face. Honestly, if it were up to me to accept my partner’s past, I don’t know how far I would go and how much would I be willing to accept until I was in the situation myself.”