A short viral clip from the popular dance reality show ‘Dance Deeewane Season 3’ showed the host Raghav Juyal using words like ‘momo’, ‘chowmein’ and ‘gibberish Chinese’ while inviting the Assamese contestant have drawn severe criticism from several quarters. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has also condemned the “racist” comment by Raghav Juyal.
"It has come to my notice that a popular reality show host has used racist rhetoric against a young participant from Guwahati. This is shameful and unacceptable. Racism has no place in our country and we should all condemn it unequivocally," Himanta Biswa Sarma said in a tweet.
It has come to my notice that a popular reality show host has used racist rhetoric against a young participant from Guwahati. This is shameful and totally unacceptable. Racism has no place in our country and we should all condem it unequivocally.
Now, Juyal has released a clarification and also apologised for hurting sentiments after the backlash.
In the video posted on his social media page, Juyal said "momo", "chowmein" and other gibberish words were a reference to the contestant's self-professed talent of conversing in Chinese.
He urged everyone to view the previous episodes that will give a complete reference and not make assumption from the short clip.
"It's unfair and not good for my mental health to see this short clip without the right context. When this contestant came to the show, she had said that she had a talent of speaking Chinese. My performance was based on that," Raghav Juyal said.
