Back in February 2022, when a former Indian cricketer accused celebrated author and sports journalist Boria Majumdar of threatening him by putting out screenshot of their Whatsapp conversation on social media, all hell broke loose for not just him but his entire family.
Though the cricketer did not name Majumdar in his social media post, cricket fans and trolls were quick to unleash a social media trial laced with memes, abuse and even death threats to not just the journalist but even his wife, an old mother, an 8-year-old daughter and even his deceased father.
The Board for Control of Cricket in India also conducted its own inquiry in the matter and decided to ban Majumdar from covering any cricket activity for two years. During the entire period, Majumdar decided to not speak about the subject in public and went about his job of covering sports, focusing on Olympic disciplines, and building his new company RevSportz.
But the ordeal had left deep emotional scars that were not easy to heal and Majumdar wanted a closure of sorts for himself by not just highlighting how a social media trial can traumatise and break individuals and families but also putting out his side of the story and why he was actual victim in the entire episode by penning down a no-holds-bar account of the harrowing experiences he and his family faced due to the unfounded allegations and subsequent online harassment in the book “Banned: A Social Media Trial.”
“Each time the abuse seemed to abate, some trigger or the other would give it oxygen. The cricketer, was commended by multiple media channels for being tight-lipped and not revealing my name in public. Perhaps it was missed that during these days when I was on the verge on a mental breakdown, he was on an interview-giving spree…. His statements were predictably followed by barrages of social media abuse and targeted insults from the trolls baying for my blood. It was enough to traumatise even the strongest,” Majumdar wrote while explaining how things unfolded in the aftermath of the “unsubstantiated” allegations.
To his credit, Majumdar does not deny sending the messages that were highlighted by the cricketer in his social media posts. However, the 48-year-old explains how those messages were not sent to the cricketer after he was dropped from the national squad, as they were made to look but the exchange had happened many days ago and stemmed from the frustration that the cricketer had not kept his word about an interview despite the journalist and his team being under tremendous work pressure during the IPL auction and the cricketer knowing about the tight schedule.
Majumdar also goes on to establish in the book how he and the said cricketer were always on very good terms till the latter decided to make those WhatsApp exchanges public. He has even put out a few earlier conversations between the two in the book to make his point and then wondered why the cricketer with whom he shared a cordial relationship for over a decade did not call him and tell him he didn’t like messages or was hurt to read them and put them out the day he was dropped.
The author also gives examples in the book of how people in the cricket fraternity understood his side but were either unwilling to help/get involved in the issue. He goes on to say that he had little chance of defending himself and later even to be heard as the cricketer was a celebrity and for the social media trolls he could have never been wrong.
Majumdar makes it a point to not be melodramatic even while explaining how his wife and daughter suffered during their ordeal and how his wife stood by him and gave him the confidence to continue doing what he loved doing the most. The author also makes it a point to mention the likes of Olympic gold medallist Abhinav Bindra, celebrated badminton coach Pullela Gopichand and many others who supported him during the two years of suspension.
Throughout the book, the journalist rather than the author takes centre stage as Majumdar makes sure that every statement he makes is well substantiated with facts and details while also interjecting stories that will make you dismayed by how damaging a social media trial can be irrespective of the facts and certain incidents that make one wonder how much a celebrity should be believed no matter what their stature and media presence be.
Though Majumdar writes that he finally decided to write the book to get a closure after his two years ban was lifted, he also points out that he would never get back that period of his life.
While reading the book, one is constantly reminded of the perils of celebrity-triggered targeting of individuals on social media and why it more important that celebrities and social influencers need to be all the more careful in what they say on social media and the impact it can have.
The views and opinions published here belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the publisher.
Mr. Majumdar has worked with Reliance Industries as General Manager, Corporate communications, ESPN Star Sports as manager, Corporate Communications and has also worked with reputed strategic communications agencies like APCO Worldwide, Genesis PR, Vaishnavi Corporate Communications and Adfactors PR.
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