Pranit More Rs 370 biryani row: Munawar Faruqui urges end to outrage after FIR, job loss and viral consent debate
Faruqui warned that excessive online outrage can have dire conseuquences
Comedian Munawar Faruqui is calling for an end to the outrage around Pranit More's Rs 370 biryani comments.
The backlash erupted after a clip from More's show went viral. During the interaction, 23-year-old Himanshu Jangra recounted paying Rs 370 for a plate of chicken biryani on a date and suggested that he deserved a "return" on that investment. The remark triggered widespread criticism online, leading Jangra to issue an apology and deactivate his social media accounts. More also apologised for the hurt caused by the exchange.
As the controversy continued to dominate social media, Munawar Faruqui weighed in, urging people to stop piling on those involved.
Sharing a video message on Instagram Stories, Munawar said, “Mujhe lagta hai ab hum sabko tham jana chahiye. Comedian ne bahut galat baat boli, crowd work mein bhi bahut galat baat hui. Us ladki ne bhi jo bola, main usse disagree karta hoon. Unhone jo bola, mujhe sunna pasand nahi hai, lekin ek level hota hai (I think all of us need to stop now. The comedian said something very wrong, and what happened during the crowd-work segment was also deeply problematic. I also disagree with what that woman said. I did not like hearing any of it, but there has to be a limit).”
He argued that those involved have already faced severe consequences for their actions.
“FIR ho gayi, job chali gayi, career khatam ho gaya, samaj mein izzat chali gayi, sab ho gaya. Unke saath unki baaton ke liye bahut bura hua hai, lekin ab tham jao. Content ke naam par jo unhe nichoda ja raha hai, bas karo bhai (An FIR has been filed, jobs have been lost, careers have been damaged, and their reputation in society has been ruined; all of that has already happened. They have faced serious consequences for what they said, but now it is time to stop. The way people are continuing to squeeze every bit of content out of this situation needs to end).”
Ending his message with a warning about the dangers of relentless online harassment, Munawar added, “Un logon ne jo baat boli, uska zakhm unhe mil gaya. Jab kisi ki laash niklegi na, tab tumhe samajh aayega. Bas karo ab. Har cheez ki ek limit hoti hai. Legally unpar jo hona hoga, ho jayega, par tum ab chup ho jao (They have already suffered enough for what they have said. By the time someone loses their life, people will finally realise they went too far. Enough now. Everything has a limit. Whatever legal consequences they are supposed to face will happen, but the public outrage and relentless piling on should stop).”
The fallout from the viral clip has been significant. Jangra, who worked at Starvik Design, was terminated after the controversy intensified, with founder Vivek Vishwakarma announcing the decision on Instagram. Meanwhile, the Maharashtra Cyber Police registered a case against More, and the National Commission for Women (NCW) summoned both More and Jangra over the remarks.
