Mukesh Khanna praises Samay Raina, calls him ‘enterprising: ‘He told me jokes, very positive’
· Entertainment · Indian Express, Hindustan Times
Actor Mukesh Khanna has defended his decision to appear alongside comedian Samay Raina in a mobile phone advertisement, saying the project had nothing to do with the controversial show India's Got Latent. Speaking on Subhojit Ghosh's podcast, Khanna said the brand took nearly 10 days to convince him to participate and that he never praised Raina or endorsed his show. He pushed back against accusations of inconsistency, asking, "Where did I bow down to say he is nice?" and insisting that "Shaktimaan cannot be bought off." Earlier this year, Khanna had publicly said Raina should be "paraded on a donkey" after the India's Got Latent controversy. Khanna also said he refused crores for his Shaktimaan character and will not let Ranveer Singh play the superhero, though he said Singh could be cast as a villain.
Why it matters
The episode captures a sharp contradiction in Indian celebrity culture, where stars publicly denounce a creator's conduct and then later appear in paid brand campaigns with the same person. For Indian audiences, the Khanna-Raina standoff over India's Got Latent had become a touchstone in the debate over comedy, accountability, and free speech on YouTube, making Khanna's clarification a direct test of whether celebrity outrage translates into commercial boundaries.
Read the original report — Indian Express
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