A video of actor Lakshmi Manchu recently surfaced online, where she was seen upset and hitting a man or interrupting her interview by walking in front of the camera. While the incident garnered much attention, the actor finally responded, saying she stands by her actions.
"That person very well knew that I was on a red carpet. It was not some random person taking a video. But he was so nonchalant, and just walked through the camera. I am an actor, you don't come in front of my camera. Never do that with any artiste. He rightly got what he deserved. These are basic manners that people don't have. I slapped him and he deserved it. I didn't go out of my way. He came into my world," Manchu said, talking about the viral video.
She added, "People have nothing better to do. There are a lot of bills which need to be passed from teaching people etiquettes, compassion, and awareness of your surroundings."
In the viral video, the actor talks to an interviewer on the red carpet of the recently held SIIMA awards in Abu Dhabi. At one point, when she's speaking into the mic, a man walks in front of the camera, and an angry Manchu hits him on the back. When another man tried to block her interview, she said, "Go behind the camera dude. Basic."
Manchu admits she knew the host asked the cameraperson not to record it, but she was not afraid of the clip getting out. "I asked her to keep it. I can protect myself. I don't care if it gets out. I am also an interviewer and have seen people come and say certain things where they feel they have shared too much. And then I get a call back asking me not to air that. I've done that for every celebrity and you respect them. But I don't care."
She is not even fretting about people taking the video incorrectly because she believes in her truth. "In today's world, nobody has time or patience to process what really happened. It's the age of cancel culture where we just believe in just cancelling things and people. I cannot expect everybody to understand me. Also, I am not there to prove myself and anything. I'm just here to live my life in an unapologetically and authentic way."