Pearle Maaney faces massive backlash for comments on student protests, loses 2 lakh Instagram followers

Actor and television presenter Pearle Maaney is facing an intense wave of online backlash after speaking out on the nationwide student protests over the alleged NEET UG examination irregularities. What began as criticism of her Instagram posts has snowballed into a coordinated unfollow campaign, with the influencer reportedly losing nearly 2,00,000 followers on Instagram in just two days.

Pearle, who had around 5.7 million followers on Instagram before the controversy, shared a series of posts expressing solidarity with students protesting in Delhi. However, her comments soon drew criticism from a section of social media users, who accused her of failing to fully acknowledge the gravity of the alleged examination scandal and taking what they described as an inadequate stand on the issue.

The backlash intensified after Pearle shared a lengthy note supporting the students' right to protest while urging them to avoid violence. Stressing that "life is more important than anything else," she appealed for peaceful demonstrations, a message that many online interpreted as diluting the students' demands. Her remarks quickly became the subject of heated debate across social media platforms.

Adding fuel to the controversy were allegations that Pearle had blocked several users who criticised her views. Soon after, screenshots of people announcing that they had unfollowed the actor began circulating widely, with calls for others to do the same. The impact has reportedly extended beyond Instagram, with her Facebook page and YouTube channel also witnessing a noticeable drop in followers.

As abusive comments and personal attacks flooded her Instagram account, Pearle eventually disabled comments on her posts, effectively shutting down public responses on the platform.

She later shared another status saying that saffron is her favourite colour, a remark that also drew strong reactions online. The post sparked another round of criticism, with many accusing her of making a political statement at a time when the debate around the NEET protests remained highly charged.