MNS demands apology from Karan Johar, Arjun Kapoor, Ranveer Singh

A day after the Maharashtra government and Mumbai police initiated a probe into allegations of “abusive and filthy” language having been used by Bollywood personalities at an AIB Roast event in Mumbai, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena here Tuesday demanded an apology from all the persons involved in it.

MNS Chitrapat Sena chief Ameya Khopkar said videos of the event — featuring Bollywood filmmaker Karan Johar and actors Arjun Kapoor and Ranveer Singh — in Mumbai last December have gone viral.

Khopkar, contending that the content of the programme was totally contrary to Indian culture and decency, demanded an “unconditional public apology” from all those involved in, failing which his organisation would not allow their movies to be screened.

Following complaints on the below-the-belt contents of the programme viewed by a 4,000-strong live audience in a city stadium, Education and Culture Minister Vinod Tawde ordered a probe Monday evening..

“The Culture Department officials shall examine the videos’ content and if found vulgar, action would be initiated,” Tawde said.

“Initial investigations indicate that the show was performed without a proper performance licence. We will register an FIR against them. Such vulgarity is a crime and, based on facts which will emerge, the government will file a case against them,” Tawde said.

Similarly, an NGO, Brahman Ekta Seva Sansthan, lodged a complaint with the Saki Naka police expressing umbrage at the programme hosts who used abusive, offensive remarks loaded with sexual overtones during the comedy show.

In a detailed four-page complaint, Sansthan president Akhilesh Tiwari demanded action not only against Johar, Singh and Kapoor but also the show organisers and others.

Clips of the videos, which leaked out, were uploaded and went viral on various social networking sites and YouTube.

Tiwari contended that the the language used in the show was extremely abusive and ruined the fair image of Indian women and culture and also misguided today’s youngsters.

The videos showed the crowd — which included several leading female Bollywood actors like Sonakshi Sinha, Deepika Padukone and Alia Bhatt besides a fair number of the women audience — enjoying, cheering, whistling and clapping at the offensive language blatantly mouthed by the trio of Johar, Arjun and Ranveer.

AIB stands for All India Bakchod, which comprises a team of stand-up comedians.

Inputs By IANS