The stand-up comedian, who is also known as Pranit More and a contestant in Bigg Boss 19, is now receiving a lot of criticism for a crowd-work video of his show that recently made it to social media. This started out as a simple act of crowd participation and turned out to be a full-blown controversy. As the reactions kept coming, Pranit More decided to break his silence and came up with a public apology for his actions.
How the Controversy Began
This row revolves around an instance of crowd work in which More has uploaded a video on his social media accounts. In the video, a 23-year-old audience member named Himanshu Jangra discussed a dating experience in which he had spent ₹370 on biryani. In his description of the event, Jangra opined that paying that amount of money had allowed him to indulge in sexual intercourse, a statement which was considered highly offensive and unacceptable.
More fuel was added to the fire as the aftermath of this episode generated further ire among netizens. Rather than refuting such statements, More chose to laugh at the joke and upload the video on his social media pages. The video soon went viral and was condemned by numerous people who felt that More had justified unacceptable behaviour through the video. Many internet celebrities criticised the comedian over the matter.
Pranit More Responds With an Apology
Under immense public pressure over the social media platform, More came up with an official apology via Instagram regarding the controversy. According to comedian, the comments were not indicative of the actor’s personal opinions and ideologies. It was emphasized by him that he did not support the views aired in the debate at all, but wished he would have handled it in a better manner.
He went on to say that, in retrospect, he felt he should have questioned the comment instead of laughing at it and forgetting about it. He described it as a ‘lapse in judgment’ and admitted his mistake of not reacting during the episode. This was the first official response of More against the criticisms leveled against him.
Social Media Exit and Growing Fallout
Even after issuing an apology, however, the scandal was not showing any signs of abating. As soon as he issued his apology, More locked out his main Instagram profile and took down the offending videos from his YouTube channel. However, his account on Marathi comedy is still active on social media platforms.
The fallout, however, was not limited to social media alone. The person who triggered the controversy, Himanshu Jangra, is said to have lost his job at a Gurugram-based design agency because his comments did not align with the agency’s values.
Legal Authorities Step In
This issue has not failed to gain the attention of the authorities too. The National Commission for Women (NCW) is said to have called upon both More and Jangra for an interview which is to take place on 22 June because they felt that there was something in their video content that could be seen as glorification of acts that were non-consensual. Meanwhile, the Maharashtra Cyber Police have filed a case against the incident.
A Turning Point for the Comedian
The case has sparked a debate on the obligations of a comedian while performing live crowd-work comedy acts. In response to criticism, More claimed that this was an unfortunate judgment call made while doing a live performance. However, the issue has taken shape into something bigger, involving consent and content moderation. Given that law enforcement is currently investigating the issue, the repercussions of a short comedy show in a club have turned out to be one of the most controversial cases in Indian entertainment circles.
