Ace designer Maheen Khan through her social media post, announced that she is returning her Lux Style Award (LSA) to protest against the platform celebrating the abusers.
21st edition of Lux Style Award was recently held in Lahore with a handful of celebrities showing up for the once famous event.
Feroze Khan’s nomination for the best male actor and his subsequent win has caused an outrage on social media against the organisers of the Lux Style Awards. Many called the platform as a place that has glorified an alleged abuser making mockery of domestic violence. Netizens have shown disapproval of Feroze Khan’s inclusion this year while many stood in solidarity with the victims of domestic abuse.
“In a world where one in three women worldwide experience physical or sexual assault, where rape and domestic abuse remains unaddressed, it is imperative that those who have a voice must use”, said the designer in her Instagram post. “physical abuse against women and girls is a human rights violation. Today it is someone’s daughter, tomorrow it might be yours.”
She further stated, “ while so many if us have raised our voices against the deaths of Zainab, Noor and others, the disregard and insensitivity of a recent award show is travesty. In all conscience, I can no longer associate myself with an event that disregards their plight.”
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Prior to this announcement made by the designer, Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy, the director of ‘Face Saving’ also announced that she would return her Lux Lifetime achievement award as a gesture of solidarity with victims of physical abuse. She received this Lux lifetime achievement award from the platform of Lux Style Award back in 2012. The filmmaker took to the Instagram saying, “ I Will be sending ( that) back to Unilever as the brand and I lo longer share the same values,” she further stated, “As the society, we must stand together against the domestic violence and we must call out those who provide platform to abusers.”
Later, An explanatory statement came from the brand saying that all the nominations are based entirely on the viewer’s choice without any intervention by the awards.
