The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) on Wednesday claimed that comedian Samay Raina’s upcoming shows in Gujarat have been cancelled following outrage over remarks made on his YouTube reality show, “India’s Got Latent.” The VHP stated that tickets for his scheduled shows in April were no longer available for sale on the online platform BookMyShow.
Social media influencer Ranveer Allahbadia, 31, initiated controversy with comments on parents and sex on Raina’s show that went viral on social media on Monday, leading to widespread criticism and multiple police complaints in Mumbai and Guwahati.
Gujarat VHP spokesperson Hitendrasinh Rajput said that Raina had planned four shows in the state—one in Surat on April 17, one in Vadodara on April 18, and two in Ahmedabad on April 19 and 20.
“It appears all these four shows have been cancelled due to public outrage against him in Gujarat. Though tickets for these shows were available till morning (of Wednesday) on BookMyShow, it seems they have been now taken down from the portal,” said Rajput.
VHP regional secretary Ashvin Patel claimed that organisers had decided to cancel the shows owing to the controversy.
“In view of the anger among people, it appears that organisers have cancelled Samay Raina’s upcoming shows in Gujarat. We are thankful to the people of Gujarat for showing such alertness. I also ask organisers to refrain from organising events of such people in Gujarat,” said Patel.
Raina, 27, responded on Wednesday by announcing that he had removed all episodes of the show from his YouTube channel.
“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,” he posted on X.
The Maharashtra Cyber Department on Tuesday registered an FIR against the show and has summoned more than 40 persons, including Allahbadia and Raina, asking them to join the probe.
The National Commission for Women (NCW) has also summoned Allahbadia, Raina, Apoorva Makhija, Jaspreet Singh, and Ashish Chanchlani, along with the show’s producers Tushar Poojari and Saurabh Bothra, to appear before it on February 17 in New Delhi.
The issue has continued to draw attention, with Shiv Sena MP Naresh Mhaske raising it in Parliament and calling for a law to regulate social media. Allahbadia has apologised for his “lapse in judgement,” but the controversy remains ongoing.
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