
YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia apologises for 'vulgar' question on 'India's Got Latent'
Allahbadia is supposed to have posed a question to a contestant that has raised hackles all around; many social media users are unsubscribing from his channel
Popular YouTube podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia, also known as 'BeerBiceps', has apologised for the 'vulgar' question he had posed on a TV show. A police complaint had also been filed against him in Mumbai.
The complaint against him stems from a controversial question he had asked on comedian Samay Raina's show 'India's Got Latent'.
The question that angered many
In the latest episode of the show, which airs on Colors TV, Allahbadia is supposed to have posed a question to a contestant that has raised hackles all around. He asked, "Would you rather watch your parents have sex every day for the rest of your life or join in once and stop it forever?"
A video of the remark quickly went viral with many netizens slamming Allahbadia and accusing him of crossing a line.
Two Mumbai lawyers have filed a police complaint against Allahbadia and the other people on the show. They have written to Mumbai Police Commissioner Vivek Phalsankar and Maharashtra Women's Commission, stating that the remarks made on 'India's Got Latent' show amount to disrespecting women and must attract action.
The apology
Sharing a video, he said, "My comment wasn't just inappropriate, it wasn't even funny. Comedy is not my forte. I'm just here to say sorry. Many of you asked if this is how I wish to use my platform and obviously this is not how I wish to use it. I'm not going to give any context or justification or reasoning behind whatever happened."
He added, "I'm just here for an apology. I personally had a lapse in judgment. It wasn't cool on my part. The podcast is watched by people of all ages. Don't want to be the kind of person that takes that responsibility lightly and family is the last thing that I would ever disrespect."
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Allahbadia continued, "Need to use this platform better, that's been my learning from this whole experience. I promise to just get better. I've asked the makers of the video to remove the insensitive sections from the video and all I can say in the end is I'm sorry, I hope you can forgive me as a human being."
Devendra Fadnavis too reacts
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis too reacted to the controversy, saying that he had not watched the clip but he had come to know that it was "very vulgar".
Talking to reporters, Fadnavis said that everyone has freedom of speech but this freedom ends when we encroach upon others' freedom.
“Everyone has limits, if anyone crosses them, action will be taken," Fadnavis said.
Users unsubscribe channels
Disappointed fans have also started to distance themselves from these influencers.
Some users said they will unsubscribe from Allahbadia and Raina's channels. "I am unsubscribing from @BeerBicepsGuy and @ReheSamay now. I joined YouTube for inspiring sports videos and followed them for fun, but I can’t see them ruining our youth with this nonsense”, observed one user. There is a movement gathering momentum to unsubscribe from Allahbadia and Raina channels now.
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Perverted creators
Journalist and lyricist Neelesh Misra also lashed out at Allahbadia and gang calling them the "perverted creators" who were shaping "our country's creative economy". According to Mishra, the "audience has normalised and celebrated this and people like these".
Creators are "stooping lower and lower" for audience reach and revenue, he added. "Banal, crass, and insensitive are words only for boring, uncool people. These creators can say anything in the name of freedom of speech and get away with it," he pointed out.
One user said that it’s a “disgrace” people like Anand Mahindra and Amitabh Bachchan support “retards” like Samay Raina. When such people get validation from respected individuals of the society, they get rewarded to continue with disgraceful behaviour. Normalise calling spade a spade again, the user asserted.
Another user said it was "extremely stupid stuff" from Allahabadia. "What is considered funny has really degraded these days," he added.
This is not the first time Raina's YouTube reality show 'India's Got Latent' is in the news. Last week, a case was reportedly filed against a contestant from Arunachal Pradesh over her remark on dog meat.