Man's 'kotha' remark on woman's dance video sparks anger, she seeks Mumbai Police's help
Prateek Aaryan shared a dance video of Shruti Parija with a ‘kotha’ remark on X. Parija asked him to remove the video and also tagged Mumbai Police for help.
A woman tagged Mumbai Police on X to seek help after a man shared a video of her dancing at a college fest along with a derogatory comment. Prateek Aaryan, while talking about the college where the woman, Shruti Parija, performed, wrote, “now it has become a 'kotha’” (a term associated with brothels). Parija reached out to the police department after Aaryan refused to take down her video from X despite her “endless requests”.
“Indian schools and colleges are well known for organizing "Sanskritik karyakram" and performances based traditional and regional culture, but now it has become a 'kotha.' In the name of cultural events, shaking booty on item songs is all they call a cultural program. Along with the education system, the cultural system is in danger in India. What a downfall for this generation and colleges in India,” Aaryan shared on X while posting the video of Parija. At the moment, however, the media in the post has been disabled. The message “This media has been disabled in response to a report by the copyright owner” upon playing the video.
Parija reacted to the X post and shared a thread where she mentioned that she is not a student of the college and attended the college fest as a professional dancer.
“I’m glad there are actually people calling s*** out. Again to clarify, I’m not associated with that college. I’m a professional choreographer. My only polite request to @Prateek_Aaryan is to take down my video. I haven’t threatened or even outraged at him,” she wrote.
In response, Aaryan tweeted his reason for not taking down the video. “Firstly, this video isn't your intellectual property; you don't own the rights, you're only a participant. Secondly, under fair use for criticism, views, and opinions, I can use any content available in the public domain without claiming ownership,” he wrote.
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“Thirdly, if you had politely requested earlier, I would have deleted my post. However, you and your friend used violent speech, threatened legal action, and mentioned putting me behind bars. Please proceed with your first option. As I clarified earlier, I didn't abuse or slut-shame you, and you acknowledged that (I've screenshots). So, if you're blaming and alleging me of abuse and violent slurs, do whatever you can. I am not deleting that post,” he added.
Following Aaryan’s tweet, Parija tagged Mumbai Police in a post and wrote, “After endless requests made to @Prateek_Aaryan to take my video down from his post where he is comparing the stage I’m dancing on as a kotha, in turn defaming me and damaging my reputation, he has refused to do so and has blackmailed me instead”.
The department reacted by tweeting, “We have followed you. Please share your contact details in DM”.
In a post, shared about 14 hours ago, Parija further informed that the media is disabled on Aaryan’s tweet. She also added, “Will update on the legal front soon!”
Netizens' reaction to the controversy:
Prateek Aaryan's tweet sparked anger among netizens and they shared posts in support of Parija.
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“You're so insufferable,” wrote an X user. “No Prateek! Calling 'kotha' doesn't count as fair criticism,” added another. “What a lowlife bully you are. Under the garb of decency and culture you’ve exposed your dirty mind which is ridden with misogyny, patriarchy, male chauvinism and everything else sad about manhood. Seek help!” joined a third. “Most toxic person I have ever seen,” wrote a fourth.
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