Recently, Indian Idol judge Neha Kakkar was forcibly kissed by one of the contestants. In a video that has received a lot of outrage on social media, one of the contestants brings gifts for Neha and asks if she recognises him. Neha figures out who he is and accepts the presents. After that, the guy kisses Neha much to her discomfort.
Now, the show’s host and singer Aditya Narayan has reacted to the incident. Speaking to Times of India, he said that it was “shocking”, but he is not sure whether the show’s producers have taken any action against the man.
“I have always tried to protect Neha but I could not stop what happened on stage the other day. I am sure that the man did not mean it in an inappropriate manner. He has a tattoo of Neha inked on his arms. I have seen fans who are obsessed. He must have had immense love for her, but you need to draw the line somwhere,” Aditya told the publication.
Aditya also said that he was “thankful” that the man only went for a kiss on Neha’s cheek. “Thankfully, there was nothing more than a peck on the cheek, else there would have been dire consequences. I am sure even Neha didn’t take it in an inappropriate way. However, we will be more careful because Neha is very important to the show,” Aditya said.
After the incident, Sony TV was called out for cashing in on what was a distressing moment for Neha. “So pathetic by @SonyTV, for money they are doing anything, promoting such harassment is really appalling for me,” wrote a user. “The fact that @SonyTV has not given any statement regarding the harassment of @iAmNehaKakkar , gives a great insight into the fact that grabbing big TRPs is more important than being a human and doing the right things.#Shame #IndianIdol believes in #trpbeforehumanity,” tweeted another.
Co-judge Vishal Dadlani had also tweeted saying that he wanted to call the police but Neha chose not to. “I suggested that the Police be called, but Neha decided to let the guy off the hook. He definitely needs psychiatric help, and we will try to help him get that, if we can. #IndianIdol11,” he had said. The tweet was apparently taken down.
Indian Idol was also mired in controversy when #MeToo accused Anu Malik came back on the show.
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