The Supreme Court’s strict order to five comedians and social media influencers, including Samay Raina, to apologise for their ‘insensitive’ jokes has raised curiosity about who they are and why they are in trouble.
Besides Samay Raina, the others named are Vipul Goyal, Balraj Ghai, Nishant Tanwar, and Sonali Thakker, also known as Sonali Aditya Desai. The petitioners listed several remarks as grounds for censure.
Who is Samay Raina, and Why Has SC Taken Offence?
Samay Raina, in his late 20s, is a stand-up comedian known for his YouTube channel and live shows. He gained recognition after winning Comicstaan 2 in 2019.
During the Covid pandemic, he mixed comedy with chess streams featuring Viswanathan Anand, Magnus Carlsen, and Aamir Khan.
In 2024, Raina launched a parody talent show called India’s Got Latent on YouTube, which gained over 7 million subscribers.
The show relied on ‘dank’ or dark humour, but some episodes triggered backlash. One notorious moment involved an incest joke, after which Raina deleted all episodes.
This time, he faced criticism for a joke during a live show. Referring to a charity drive for a child with a rare disorder, he asked if parents would spend the ₹16 crore raised on treatment or reconsider since ‘the child might die anyway’.
The audience laughed, but an organisation working on Spinal Muscular Atrophy filed a petition against him.
Justice Surya Kant of the SC bench remarked: “Today, it is disabled, tomorrow something else. How will society be affected? Where will all this end?”
The case will be heard again in November.
Other Comics Pulled Up by SC
Vipul Goyal, an IIT Bombay graduate, turned to stand-up after theatre. He gained fame with Humorously Yours on TVF in 2016 and appeared on Raina’s India’s Got Latent. He is accused of making insensitive jokes about disabilities.
Balraj Ghai, not a comic but a co-host and judge on India’s Got Latent, also faces censure. His family owns a stand-up club in Mumbai where the show was filmed. The venue was vandalised recently after controversy over its content.
Nishant Tanwar, also called ‘Joke Singh’ and ‘Rider OP’, started as a video producer before moving into comedy. His Amazon Prime special in 2018 featured bold language and earned him wider recognition.
Sonali Thakker, known as Sonali Aditya Desai, switched from accountancy to comedy. She has nearly 1,40,000 Instagram followers and 17,000 YouTube subscribers.
The Supreme Court has ordered all five to issue public apologies. The matter remains under judicial scrutiny.
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