Brother Australia” housemate Priya Malik has opened up about the racist and sexist abuse she faces since leaving the reality show house in November. The 28-year-old schoolteacher and aspiring stand-up comic said there are people on social media who wish for her death and target her for her Indian ethnicity.

Priya, who was dubbed “Posh Spice” in the on-air promo before the show started in September, has had her share of fans and critics while appearing in the program. She was generally well-liked, but just as expected with anyone who appears on a reality show, Priya knew not everyone will be a fan of her actions. She wasn’t expecting the level of vitriol directed at her by some online commenters, who took aim at her gender, religion and ethnicity.

She came to Australia in 2008 on a student visa. She is now a permanent Australian resident. Although Priya, who came from a Hindu family in Dehradun, India, describes herself as agnostic, there are people who think she’s Muslim because of her surname and her looks.

Speaking to the Guardian, Priya opened up about the abuse that coldly welcomed her back to the real world. She saw the hateful comments upon her exit from the house, but some of them were posted while she was still appearing on television.

“I’d pay so much money to see you tortured and killed,” one Facebook user wrote on her page. The same user also posted graphic images of violently assaulted women.

“Get the f--- off the show you fat mess…. I can’t wait to get in a taxi an see you so I can shred you till you commit suicide and the world will be a better place,” (sic) the user added. One post also mocked Priya’s weight.

Priya was warned of the social media backlash against her by a producer upon her exit from the house, but they didn’t warn her about the death threats and the vile images that were posted on her page. She only realised later that these people weren’t critics, they were abusers.

“All I’ve done is go on a TV show,” she told the paper. “I haven’t done anything personal to these people. I understand that I was opening myself up to judgement, but death threats are uncalled for.”

Even her husband Bhushan Malik, who ran her Twitter fan page while she was in the house, couldn’t take the disgusting posts one guy keep writing on her social media pages. “Hate stuff” is one thing, but the unidentified man was fantasising on how he wanted to kill Bhushan’s wife. The couple took extra precaution for their safety when a man, who may or may not be connected with the other man posting vile threats against Priya, posed as a real estate agent to get their home address. They haven’t filed a police report yet, though they have talked to the police about it.

As every housemate who entered the house, Priya was assigned a psychologist to help her cope with dealing with her newfound fame and the drawbacks that come with it. Although she has been made a target by online abusers, Priya doesn’t regret her time in the house. And if she could do it again, she would enter the reality show house once more.

The fact that she doesn’t see herself as a victim but a fighter has made her a role model to other people who feel abused. She has been getting letters from different people who thank her for inspiring them.

“Women who are in abusive relationships have written to me,” she said. “An Aboriginal person wrote to me about their experience. A lot of Muslim people have written to me saying ‘thank you for standing up for us.’”

Priya has spoken up about standing up for oneself before. She said her defining moments in the house include her refusal to be insulted.

“If standing up for yourself is considered ‘defensive,’ then I put the D in defensive. I am defensive as hell,” she told TheFix.