Just days ago, an image of Himanshi Narwal sitting in shock beside her husband’s body—a Navy officer killed in the brutal terror attack in Pahalgam—became a symbol of national mourning. The image was shared widely across social media platforms as a face of loss and grief.
But in a stunning and cruel reversal, she has now become the target of trolling and harassment by the same platforms, following her appeal for peace in the wake of the tragic attack.
The Pahalgam attack significantly soured India-Pakistan relations and triggered a spate of attacks and harassment of Muslims and Kashmiris around India. In this backdrop, Himanshi made a heartfelt plea, while speaking to the media at a blood donation camp in Karnal in memory of the victims, stating, "We don’t want people to go after Muslims and Kashmiris. We want peace and only peace. Of course, we want justice. The people who have wronged him should be punished.”
Her refusal to give in to hate-driven narratives, and her appeal for unity, have triggered a storm of online vitriol, with trolls accusing her of being "soft on terror" and questioning her patriotism.
The National Commission for Women (NCW) has since intervened, condemning the abuse and reminding the public that no one should be targeted for their personal beliefs—especially not a grieving widow.
Referring to the widespread social media backlash on Himanshi's remarks, the NCW wrote, "After the death of Lieutenant Vinay Narwal, the way his wife Himanshi Narwal is being criticised on social media in relation to one of her statements is unfortunate." The commission noted that although her remarks may not align with everyone’s views, any disagreement should be expressed within the bounds of the Constitution and respectful public dialogue.
Tragedy turned into a social media spectacle
Vinay Narwal and Himanshi had been married barely a week before tragedy struck on April 22. The newlyweds were on their honeymoon when a targeted terror attack claimed 26 lives, including that of Vinay. A haunting photo of Himanshi seated beside his slain body, still wearing her wedding bangles, quickly went viral, becoming a powerful symbol of national grief and the human cost of terrorism.
Many shared the original image with heartfelt messages, offering sympathy and standing in solidarity with the grieving family. Some posts were steeped in grief, others echoed anger—calling for justice and evoking a sense of collective revenge for the innocent lives lost.
The 'Ghibli' frenzy
However, a number of accounts decided to exploit the virality of the image and topic for better engagement, turning to viral AI filters and image generation tools to draw likes and shares. The most popular of these was the Studio Ghibli filter—part of a recent trend where AI is used to give real images a soft, Japanese anime-style, "aesthetic" feel.
The Bharatiya Janata Party’s Chhattisgarh unit was among the first to share a ‘Ghiblified’ version of the photo of Himanshi beside her husband’s body, posting it on Facebook with a Hindi caption that loosely translates to “They asked for religion, not caste”. The same image later surfaced on X.
Others took the trend further, swapping Ghibli’s dreamlike tones for hyper-realistic AI recreations that leaned into sensationalism. One depicted Himanshi sobbing beside the body with a dramatic blood-red pond behind them. Another showed the couple surrounded by fire, smoke, and explosions—turning a deeply personal tragedy into a cinematic spectacle.
None of these visual elements appeared in the original photograph. But accuracy wasn’t the goal—virality was.
A plea for peace, met with hate
However, the social media frenzy quickly escalated after Himanshi’s peace appeal—urging people not to target Muslims or Kashmiris, and to seek justice without hate—went viral, clashing with a plethora of charged emotions.
Sympathy and symbolism went for toss, as the same social media communities shifted jarringly to mock, troll and vilify her, branding her as insensitive and politically motivated, and resorting to a viral character assassination campaign, filled with personal attacks, conspiracy theories, and malicious speculation.
Some users accused her of having ulterior motives—claiming she would "seize her in-laws’ property and leave them destitute," while others criticised her for supposedly showing “no remorse” or using the tragedy as a “stepping stone” to gain political or social visibility.
Others went digging into her past, surfacing old Facebook posts where Himanshi had demanded justice for the rape and murder of a 6-year-old girl in Kathua—posts now twisted to imply political bias. Another user accused her of being "close to Kashmiris" during her university days, as though that were evidence of anti-national leanings or alleged "affinity toward Pakistan".
Escalating it further, a user with over 46,000 followers even urged the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to probe her for supposed terrorist links.
These attacks didn’t come from isolated voices. Most of the accounts targeting Himanshi regularly post right-leaning content, often in support of the incumbent BJP. A majority of their posts are openly anti-minority in tone—vilifying Muslims, amplifying nationalist rhetoric, and framing dissent or calls for peace as betrayal.
Among those targeting Himanshi was Abhishek Singh who claims to be the Patna City head of Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party—an NDA ally—who labelled her the “brainwashed face of Indian secularism”.