AIB Knockout Roast: Celebrities react to the controversy

Beating Ayan Mukerji, Farhan Akhtar, Homi Adajania and Kabir Khan, Karan Johar recently took home the Most Glamorous Director trophy at a Glamour and Style awards event. Besides his style, it was Karan’s oratorical skills that caught everyone’s attention. Karan, while accepting his award, in the midst of thunderous claps, said, ”Sometimes the word glamour is associated with a certain amount of frivolousness and sometimes there is a snob value attached to it. But there must be something important and amazing about glamour that it is a billion dollar industry worldwide today. So those who are the naysayers of glamour, I want to tell them it is a point of perspective and those who love it, I love them more.” While Karan may be an ace when it comes to handling the media but his discomfort was obvious at the event when asked about the AIB Roast controversy, "I am here for fashion today. I would not be talking on any other issue," said Karan with folded hands. And Karan’s protégé, Alia was smarter at dodging the question. She said, "Viral? What viral video are you talking about? I am here for the Filmfare Glamour and Style Awards but you haven't asked me a single question about that."

The bold Rakhi Sawant has spoken about the controversial comedy show AIB Knockout. At a recent event, when asked to comment on the AIB Knockout, Rakhi said to the media that she would like to abuse everybody, because it's fun and today everyone wants to hear it. Rakhi said that the AIB Knockout has the highest viewership on YouTube. "I feel one should speak his/her mind. If they feel that they should abuse, then they can abuse," quipped Rakhi. Talking about Karan Johar's involvement in the Roast, Rakhi emphasised that Karan's voice in the video has been dubbed. "I feel it's a cheating. That voice is not Karan's voice. Ranveer and Karan are good friends of mine," she said. "Someone is trying to frame Karan. Because they are celebrities and and they are so famous, they will never abuse in front of the camera," Rakhi added.

While Rakhi has opened up about the Roast, read on to know what Mallika Sherawat had to say about the controversial comedy show...

As per a report on Bollywoodlife.com, Sanjay Leela Bhansali is not very happy about Ranveer Singh's involvement in the AIB Knockout roast. Ranveer, who is currently shooting for Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Bajirao Mastani, got an earful from the director, the report stated. Further to the report, Bhansali also advised Ranveer to behave like Salman and Shah Rukh and not like a 'chichora'.

According to a report on Hindustantimes.com, Aamir Khan has found support in Dirty Politics actress Mallika Sherawat for his comments against AIB Knockout roast. The report quoted Mallika as saying that she hasn't seen the roast, but she agrees with what Aamir has said. The actresses added in the interview that there shouldn’t be any emotional violence, like Aamir said and that she feels we shouldn’t hurt anyone’s feelings and sensibilities. Further to the reports, Mallika opines that we should get offended by the fact that we do not have clean water for drinking, and the condition of women in the society today.

While Mallika clearly stood by Aamir's stand, Shah Rukh Khan refused to take sides, but had his own opinion about the AIB Knockout roast. Read on to know what he said...

According to a PTI report, Shah Rukh Khan would not like to take any sides on the controversy surrounding the AIB roast as he feels humour is a tricky thing and will always invoke different reactions from people. When asked about the celebrity roast involving Karan Johar, Ranveer Singh and Arjun Kapoor, the actor said to PTI that he believes in humour but has also become careful with his words as an entertainer. "I am someone who has always believed in sense of humour. Over the years my sense of humour is rounded off if not completely over. I have learnt to curtail it because there is always going to be a thin line when it comes to humour. It is always going to invoke radical reaction, either you are going to laugh at it or hate it," the report quoted Shah Rukh. "When you are a popular actor like I am, people listen to you... So, you need to re-look at it and I am only speaking about myself here. There will always be issues and questions. I can't take any sides," SRK said to PTI.

Talking about power of choice SRK added in the interview with PTI, "There is always freedom of expression and there is a choice you have to make. I always say that if you don't like something don't watch it. Nobody is shoving it down your throat but if you don't like something and you have watched it then live with it. There are a lot of movies that I have watched and don't like but I don't have the right to go and blame the person who made them. The beauty of today's media is that the power of choice is in your hand, you can decide to watch or not watch something. But having said that, I think I have become very aware of the fact that I need to follow some control aspect... But I will not be able to comment on what others do, how they do or why they do."

While Shah Rukh refused to take sides, read on to know what Vidya Balan had to say about the AIB controversy...

According to reports, on being asked her views on the AIB Roast, Vidya Balan said, "By the time I heard about it and tried to check it out, the video had been taken off YouTube. So, I'm rather ill-equipped to answer this question. Having said that, I'm aware that people bought tickets and willingly went for the show. Neither the participants nor the audience was acting at gun point. I think everyone has the freedom to do what they want to. As an artiste, it may not be my sensibility and as the audience it may not be something I enjoy, but that doesn't make it wrong...I think moral policing is very vague -the lines are blurred between what is acceptable and what is not; and importantly, who decides that? I think as citizens of a free country we must respect everyone's right to do what they choose."

At the same event, Vidya also spoke about CBFC's decision to ban certain words. She said, "The Dirty Picture, No One Killed Jessica, Ishqiya - all had cuss words. I think we are looking at the issue from a superficial point of view. I don't think banning cuss words can be an answer to anything. Attitudinal changes have to happen at a deeper level. Cinema is a reflection of the society. Here, you are curbing the freedom of expression by saying: you can't do this, you can't do that. The moment such offensive words and or such ills get eradicated from society , cinema will stop showing that."

Let's take a look at how other celebs reacted to the roast.

According to a report on Pinkvilla.com, Kareena Kapoor Khan shared her opinion about the AIB Knockout Roast at a launch event of an ice-cream brand. Quoting the actress, the report stated that the country has far more things to worry about. The actress also mentioned that she has no interest in watching the Roast.

Read on to know what popular comedians Kiku Sharda and Sunil Grover said about the AIB Knockout...

According to a report on Bollywoodlife.com, popular comedians are supporting AIB Knockout despite the whirlwind criticism against the show. After international comedian Russell Peters asked Aamir Khan to ‘shut up,’ comedian-actor Vir Das along with the Comedy Nights With Kapil stars Sunil Grover (popularly known as Gutthi) and Kiku Sharda (known as Palak) have condemned the filing of an FIR against the celebs or makers involved in it. All three of them are of the opinion that the humour may be good or bad, but the freedom of expression should not be restricted. Read on to know what Varun Dhawan said about the AIB Knockout...

Varun Dhawan refuses to discuss the AIB Roast controversy reasoning that the issue has been dragged too far already or so claims a report in Mid-day. He has requested the media to stop discussing the issue as he feels that there are bigger issues to be addressed in the country. He reasoned that we should rather discuss about the rapes, corruption and other pressing concerns. He also asserted that he knew the people involved with the Roast and revealed that they had to take the video down because they were worried that not doing so would land them in jail. He feels that what happened with those involved was terrible and asserted that since they were currently under police protection, he would rather not discuss the issue anymore.

Priyanka too took a stand in the AIB Roast controversy by supporting Twinkle Khanna's column on the issue. Let's see what she thought about it...

According to a Bombay Times report, Priyanka Chopra congratulated Twinkle Khanna for her recent column on the hypocritical mindset of those who have criticised the AIB Knockout Roast. Twinkle raised some pertinent questions on fake morality, and PC too showed her liberal approach when she congratulated Twinkle, the report stated. "Such imperative questions! Well done ! RT @mrsfunnybones'' [sic] Priyanka tweeted.


While Priyanka is all praise for Twinkle, Sonakshi Sinha apparently ended up in a little war of words with Mahesh Bhatt on Twitter over the AIB Knockout. Read on to know more...

Ever since the AIB knockout Roast was premiered, it has been surrounded by controversies. The latest one being 'Dabangg' girl Sonakshi Sinha and Mahesh Bhatt's Twitter war. Talking about the tweets in an interview with the Hindustan Times, Sonakshi Sinha said that she does not need her father to fight her battles. She also said that she wanted to address the battle herself and that is how she has been raised. She also added that the issue between Mahesh Bhatt and her has been sorted, the report further stated.
Read on to know how Mahesh Bhatt questioned why Sonakshi's name was missing from the FIR which included Alia Bhatt's name...

According to a report on Hindustantimes.com, following an FIR being lodged against 14 people involved in the controversial comedy show AIB Roast (including Alia Bhatt, but not Sonakshi Sinha), filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt has reacted strongly questioning why Sonakshi Sinha's name wasn't mentioned in the FIR among the celebrities. The report further quoted Mahesh Bhatt as saying that certain forces are at play that are leading to these events and everyone can see it, apparently hinting at a possible ­intervention from Sonakshi's father, Shatrughan Sinha. In response Sonakshi posted a series of tweets, "Dear Mr Mahesh Bhatt, a couple of pointless FIR's have been filed before this (delhi and kol if im not mistaken), in which my name was Mentioned and Alia's wasn't. I don't ­remember my father questioning them as to how or why so." [sic] She further wrote, "I do agree with u ­however, if these FIR's Are filed on 2-3 members of the audience, why not the other 3,998. Let's not give these ppl the attention they so desperately seek, And as far as my memory serves me, nobody EVER went to jail for laughing." [sic]

Here's what Aamir Khan had to say about the Roast...

According to a report in NDTV.com, Aamir Khan has received an open letter from filmmaker, Tarun Mansukhani in response to his comments on the ongoing AIB Roast controversy. Tarun Mansukhani asked Aamir to be a responsible celebrity. Aamir, who stood by his films, PK and Delhi Belly, considered the content of AIB Roast to be violent and this probably did not go down well with AIB supporters. Apart from Tarun Mansukhani, filmmaker Anurag Kashyap also posted a video of Aamir on Facebook, where he is seen defending his film, Delhi Belly. In the video we can see Aamir saying, "I have already informed my audiences that it is an adult film. Please do not go with your kids and those who have a problem with this kind of language shouldn't come either. I try my best to inform the audiences before-hand. If the audience is adult, they can decide themselves."

Not only the industry insiders but even bloggers seemed to be miffed with Aamir. According to the report, a blogger named Vidyut asked, "You know first-hand what happens when angry people don't like content. Do you see the anger as your fault?"

Aamir wasn't too kind with his criticism of the 'Roast.' Here's what he had to say...

According to a Mumbai Mirror report, Aamir Khan too has picked a side in the AIB Roast controversy. However, it comes as a surprise that the actor, who was seen going all out defending the expletives used in Delhi Belly, has joined the list of detractors. At an event on Monday, the actor admitted that though he hasn't seen the video, he had heard about it and seen a couple of clips.“After the Roast, I happened to be at a place where Karan and Arjun were also present. They told us about how they did this Roast and all the dialogues that were exchanged at the event. I was deeply affected by that and disappointed in what I was hearing," the actor was quoted as saying in the report. He also asserted that he had taken up the matter with his friends, Karan Johar and Arjun Kapoor. “I scolded both Karan and Arjun and told them that I didn't find it funny at all.You can't give 25 gaalis and think that people will like it. I am not a 14-year-old that I will be impressed by gaalis," he asserted.

While everyone is reacting differently, we bring to you what Bollywood has to say about the controversial videos and the concept of a 'Roast'.

Sonam Kapoor too has chosen a side in the ongoing AIB Roast controversy and she is all for freedom of speech. The actress, whose cousin, Arjun Kapoor was a part of the 'Roast' said that she didn't beleive in censorship. Reluctantly commenting when asked to, Sonam said, "I love the comments that AIB has already made. It doesn't matter what the content is, people should be allowed to put out anything that they feel. I don't believe in censorship. That's all that I have to say." Sonam also kept insisting that she had tweeted her opinions after watching the AIB Roast on Youtube and that it should be considered her statement. However, in her tweet, Sonam seems to have addressed Ashoke Pandit, slamming him for his inflammatory tweet to Karan Johar that read, "Karan Johar could have easily shown his position while performing sex to his mom at home instead of making it public.#AIB Porn Show." Sonam Kapoor's retort read, "@ashokepandit comes across as a homophobic misogynistic loser. Are we really trying to curb freedom of speech and expression?"

Starlet Poonam Pandey, known mostly for her offer to strip if the Indian Cricket Team won the 2011 World Cup, had made news once again. India's most downloaded model refused an offer from Gursimran Khamba and Tammay Bhat to do a podcast on All India Bakchod (AIB) as she felt it was too demeaning to the women folk. AIB has been in the news recently for its Roast controversy including celebs Ranveer Singh, Arjun Kapoor and Karan Johar. It has been a talking point amongst celebs, fans and even the Government. But Poonam refused this offer. "I have heard that AIB has been doing some good work, but then some of what I have seen wasn't really up my alley. The digital medium has been home for me over the last four years, but then I felt that I could not participate in something like this," said the Nasha actress. Sources inform that Poonam felt that the contents of the show were rather demeaning to women and hence did not pursue the offer sent by AIB . While Poonam seems to have made her stand clear, here's a look at what other celebs had to say about the AIB Roast.

The AIB Roast has been into a lot of controversy ever since it was uploaded on YouTube. The concept of a 'Roast' was attempted for the first time in India with Ranveer Singh, Arjun Kapoor and Karan Johar. Many took an offence to the nature of the video, following which, the team of AIB had to pull down the video. According to an IANS report, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena had also demanded an apology from everyone involved in it.

Kamaal R Khan is known for his controversial statements and when it comes to AIB, he put up a review of the same on YouTube. In the video he said, "What these people are doing in 2015 is something that I had done in 2008 in Bigg Boss. They said in the end that they had collected 4 lakh rupees, which means that after so many abuses they collected this amount. They were sold very cheap, you are lower even that 2Rs people. You should have atleast sold the tickted for 50k-60k." He commented on Sonakshi Sinha and Parineeti Chopra too by saying, "In AIB's show it was said that Sonakshi is so fat and what not. And she was laughing at it but when I said something, Sonakshiji said that I do not respect women. Why such hypocrisy? Also why is Parineeti Chopra not saying anything now? but she immediately blocked me when I commented about her weight. Why such double standard?"

Ram Gopal Varma and Karan Johar are not known to be the best of friends as they have often engaged in war of words on microblogging site, Twitter. However when Karan was caught in the AIB controversy the filmmaker came out in support of his fellow director. RGV had posted on Twitter, "For me AIB is not a comedy show ..its a k j 's philosophical treatise on uprooting a hypocritical society and to grow an all new one. Whoever reacting negativly on AIB r just 2 bit dirt cheap publicity mongers who r Jst trying 2 get in ther own 2 bit reflected light of AIB." [sic]

Quite a few jokes at the AIB Roast were aimed at the alleged relationship of Anushka Sharma and Ranveer Singh. However according to a PTI report, the actress said that everything was to be taken in good humour. The report quoted Anushka Sharma as saying, "The way I look at it, I think it was in a good humour. Not meant to be taken very seriously. This is my opinion and someone else may have a different opinion about it and that is the beauty of a living in a democratic setup. This has been made unnecessarily a big issue and it's not needed. There are many more important things which people are dealing with and fighting for."

Karan Johar has been the best of friends with both the Khans in Bollywood - Salman and Shah Rukh. And after KJo was mired in the AIB controversy, it seems like both of them spoke to the filmmaker. According to a Mumbai Mirror report, Karan was apparently given an earful from Salman and SRK for his participation in the controversial AIB Roast. The Mumbai Mirror also report stated that Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan had criticised Karan for performing the act especially in the presence of his mother. However, the report also stated that Karan Johar had confided in close aides that his mother did not mind the jokes and she had a good time.

Filmmaker R Balki who has made intelligent films like Paa and Shamitabh also shared his view on the AIB controversy. According to an IANS report, the filmmaker said, "My theory on all these things is very simple -- if you can sell cigarettes, you should not ban them, you should not ban advertising them and you should not give a statutory warning, and then keep on selling cigarettes. In the same way, if you can use a bad word ... as friends, we are using bad words and you (people) are quite okay with that, it's fun. They were (the AIB team) having fun, they were not abusing anybody else. I don't think you should take all these thing too seriously because there are too many issues in the country and we should focus on them."

Divyendu Sharma of Pyaar Ka Punchnama fame also shared his opinion on the ongoing AIB controversy. According to an IANS report, the actor said that the generation gap could be cause of the debate. He was quoted in the IANS report as saying, "Personally I don't have any problem with that. As a society if people can crack jokes on each other, I think there is no harm in that. And if they (Ranveer and Arjun) have no problems with the jokes that AIB team were making on them, I don't think someone should have... I don't think it is a big issue. Maybe it's because of generation gap. Some may like and some wont."