India's Got Latent Row: Who Said What As Samay Raina Forced To Remove All YouTube Episodes

Comedian Samay Raina and YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia have been facing backlash over controversial comments on an episode of 'India's Got Latent'. It all started after Mr Allahbadia, known for his channel Beer Biceps on YouTube, made remarks about parents and sex during an episode on the show, which also featured content creators like Ashish Chanchalani, Jaspreet Singh and Apoorva Mukhija, who goes by the name 'The Rebel Kid' on Instagram. Although the said episode has now been deleted, the comments, deemed offensive by many, led to widespread outrage and multiple complaints across the nation. 

It has snowballed into such a huge controversy that it reached the halls of Parliament. It even led to a police case against 30-40 people and removal of the all the episodes from the video streaming platform. 

Comedians, Celebs Defend Samay Raina 

However, amid the ongoing backlash, some celebs and content creators have come out in support of Samay Rain and his hit show. These include popular rapper Raftaar, comedian Munawar Faruqui, Actor Aly Goni and Akansha Ranjan Kapoor, among others. 

Raftaar who appeared in one of the episodes of the reality show took to social media to reflect on a human tendency that many may not fully grasp - the satisfaction people experience when successful individuals face failure. While he did not explicitly mention comedian Samay Raina or podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia in his post, the timing and the context suggested that his comments may have been about the ongoing controversy. 

"People often enjoy seeing successful individuals fail," the rapper wrote. He then went on to explain a few reasons why people often celebrate the misfortune of others, especially those in the limelight. "It's worth reflecting on why we feel this way, questioning whether it's about justice or soothing our own insecurities," he wrote in his post. 

Akanksha Ranjan Kapoor wrote, "Guys I think I'm losing my mind.. so marital rape is ok? Any and all rape is ok? Killing us with hazardous air quality is fine. People literally falling into potholes and dying is fine. Pay inequality / bribery/caste system/taxes that are killing the middle class is all MAST! But apne moral standing par koi kaise dhabba dal sakta hai?"

Munawar Faruqui who appeared on the show said, "Art joh hai woh spring ki hai. Jitnaa dabage utnaa uper uthega. My G is going to come out so strong you will see."

Several 'India's Got Latent' contestants also extended support to Samay Raina. Sharon, who famously did the 'weak independent woman' gig at the YouTube show, called Mr Raina her brother and wrote, "IGL gave me so much man. it was the reason i could actually pursue this dream of doing comedy. cant believe how its turned out. samay's genuinely been a big brother to us."

Visually impaired comedian Bhavya Shah also referred to Mr Raina as his elder brother and wrote he was grateful to the latter for giving him the platform to showcase his talent. "Did IGL cross a line? It definitely pushed the boundary. Be honest: if you were asked to imagine a blind person 6 months ago, you would have pictured a singer on the train with a begging bowl. Indian media has always shown us as objects of pity, sources of inspiration. Latent was the first time people saw something different: disabled people being goofy and Bakchod and normal. IGL was the platform. Samay was the gentleman. Remember that. P.S. So sorry for saying "disabled"! Mera matlab "differently-abled" tha," he shared via Instagram stories.

Also Read | Vir Das Attacks Mainstream Media Amid Row Over Ranveer Allahbadia's Remarks

Similarly, visually challenged comedian, Kushal Bhanushali thanked Mr Raina and the show for allowing him to showcase his talent and put him in the limelight. "Igl was my big bang. Thankyou Samay Bhaiya," he wrote on X.

Backlash Over India's Got Latent

Meanwhile, several celebrities, influencers and politicians have been boiling over the controversial episode. 

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that while he had not watched the clip, he had come to know that it was "very vulgar". He also said anyone who "crosses the limits of decency" will face action. "I have been informed about this, though I have not watched it yet. I came to know that it was very vulgar and this was wrong. Everyone has freedom of speech but this freedom ends when we encroach upon others' freedom," Mr Fadnavis told reporters. "Everyone has limits, if anyone crosses them, action will be taken," he added.

YouTuber Gaurav Taneja, popularly known as Flying Beast, also voiced his opinion, stating "Seems like #SamayRaina won't stop until he gets all of YouTube India cancelled."

Mukesh Khanna also called out the comedians and urged the government to put them to shame. Sharing his views on his YouTube channel 'Bheeshm International', the actor said, "This is a serious offence. It should not be taken lightly".

Notably, Samay Raina said Wednesday that he has removed all 'India Got Latent' videos, adding it is "too much for me to handle", amid a raging controversy over YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia's controversial comments on his show. He said his only "objective was to make people laugh and have a good time".

"Everything that is happening has been too much for me to handle. I have removed all India's Got Latent videos from my channel. My only objective was to make people laugh and have a good time. I will fully cooperate with all agencies to ensure their inquiries are concluded fairly. Thank you," Mr Raina posted on X.