The All Indian Cine Workers Association (AICWA) has issued a statement, urging the filing of a First Information Report (FIR) against model-actor Poonam Pandey. Venturing onto X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday, AICWA expressed their disapproval, stating that 'using the guise of cervical cancer for self-promotion is not acceptable.' This comes in response to Poonam's team sharing a statement on Instagram on Friday, claiming her demise from the disease.
Poonam Pandey herself posted videos on her Instagram account yesterday, affirming that she is alive and explaining that the earlier statement was part of an effort to raise awareness about cervical cancer. In one of the videos, she stated, "I feel compelled to share something significant with you all - I am here, alive. Cervical cancer didn’t claim me, but tragically, it has claimed the lives of thousands of women who stemmed from a lack of knowledge on how to tackle this disease..."
AICWA's official statement criticized Poonam Pandey's actions, labelling the purported cervical cancer PR stunt as highly inappropriate. They emphasized that such a strategy, using a serious health concern for self-promotion, is unacceptable. The association expressed concern that such incidents might erode public trust in death news within the Indian film industry, asserting, "No one in the film industry stoops to such levels for PR."