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Hyderabad: Indian tennis star Sania Mirza has joined the growing list of public figures speaking in support of students amid the ongoing protests over alleged NEET irregularities. However, the timing of her reaction has now created an awkward contradiction.

The former tennis star reposted a viral reel in which a creator mocked Bollywood celebrities for suddenly waking up after weeks of protests. The reel questioned why several stars remained silent until Prime Minister Narendra Modi publicly addressed the issue.

However, Sania’s own post supporting the students also appeared after Modi’s statement.

She reshared the creator’s reel criticising celebrities for their delayed reactions, seemingly overlooking that her response followed a similar timeline.

The sequence hasn’t gone unnoticed. While Sania’s support is being appreciated, resharing a reel that calls out others for speaking only after the Prime Minister’s intervention has exposed her to the same criticism.

Several celebrities including Kareena Kapoor Khan, Alia Bhatt, Sara Ali Khan and others began posting about the protests after Modi addressed the examination paper-leak controversy on July 22. Sania shared her message on July 23.

Sania Mirza’s statement on students protest

Taking to Instagram on Thursday, Sania Mirza wrote that students are “the future of our country” and said her heart goes out to those who have spent years preparing for competitive exams like NEET, only to face uncertainty in recent days. She stressed that students’ voices deserve to be heard, their concerns addressed, and proper reforms implemented to restore trust in the system.

Her post read, “This is to express solidarity with the genuine concerns of students who are the future of our country.”

“There is no place for violence in our society and we must all work together to find an amicable solution that secures the future of our youth,” she added.

Other celebrities from the film industry have also reacted to the influencer’s viral reel. Actors including Sonakshi Sinha and Dia Mirza, who have been vocal about the ongoing protests from the very beginning, responded to the video. Both actresses have consistently expressed solidarity with the students, using their social media platforms to amplify their concerns and urge for empathy and accountability throughout the movement.

With celebrity reactions already being closely scrutinised, Sania’s repost has only added another layer to the debate: was she calling out Bollywood or unintentionally calling out herself?