Apoorva Mukhija, also known as The Rebel Kid on Instagram, returned to social media (Instagram) after a month-long break. Her silence followed her appearance on India’s Got Latent, where a controversial remark from fellow guest Ranveer Allahbadia led to widespread backlash.
The Controversy
The controversy began when fellow comedian and judge Ranveer Allahbadia made a comment on the show, which was widely criticised, with many calling it offensive and inappropriate. It had also triggered a wave of backlash online.
Although the majority of the criticism was directed at Ranveer, Apoorva and other guests who were featured on the episode were also caught in the storm of the criticism. The other guests on the show were criticized for firstly being part of the show and secondly for not responding to the remark made by Ranveer Allahbadia.
The Fallout
In response to the online criticism and backlash, Apoorva deleted all her Instagram posts, unfollowed everyone, and went silent on social media for over a month. She chose to withdraw from the social media platform to avoid further engagement with the backlash and take time away from the online hate.
A Powerful Return
After her break, Apoorva made a powerful return to Instagram with her first post, which began with a "Trigger warning: This post contains mentions of acid attacks, rape threats, and death threats." In the post, she shared a series of screenshots showing the abusive comments and threats she had received following the controversy. The caption read: "And that’s not even 1%." This served as a stark reminder of the extent of online abuse she faced after her appearance on India’s Got Latent.A few minutes later, Apoorva followed up with another post featuring the quote, “Don’t take away the story from the storyteller.” The caption accompanying this post read: “Show them how it’s done.” In this second post, Apoorva chose to focus on strength and resilience, rather than directly addressing the controversy.