Mumbai: Comedian and YouTuber Samay Raina was felicitated by Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis at a cyber-awareness event in Mumbai on Wednesday, where the comedian also joked about his past association with the state's cybercrime wing.
Raina was honoured alongside actors Pankaj Tripathi, Sharad Kelkar, Sonali Bendre, Ashish Vidyarthi, Javed Jaffrey and Mangesh Desai, as well as singer Sunidhi Chauhan, for their contribution to a Maharashtra Cyber awareness initiative. During the event, Fadnavis launched the cyber-awareness short film 'Digital Arrest' and the 1930 Maharashtra Cyber Anthem.
Samay Raina Jokes About '1930'
While accepting the felicitation, Raina made a humorous reference to his previous interactions with Maharashtra Cyber. "1930 is really a great number. I have actually saved it because I often get calls from there," Raina said, drawing laughter from the audience. He also praised the cyber cell for being active, joking that its officials could track people whether they were in India or the United States.
Raina further joked that it was unusual for a cyber cell officer to visit a comedian's house and 'pick him up', referring to his earlier questioning by Maharashtra Cyber in connection with the India's Got Latent controversy.
Raina's Previous Legal Trouble
Raina had faced legal action last year following a controversy surrounding his YouTube show India's Got Latent. The controversy erupted after guest podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia made an inappropriate remark during an episode.
An FIR was later registered against Raina, Allahbadia and others associated with the show. Raina, who was touring the United States when initially summoned, had requested permission to record his statement through video conferencing. Maharashtra Cyber rejected the request and directed him to appear in person.
Raina later appeared before Cyber officials in Mumbai and expressed regret over the controversy. He also removed all Season 1 videos of India's Got Latent from his YouTube channel.
The comedian recently received relief from the Supreme Court. On August 14, the court quashed criminal proceedings against Raina and four other comedians over insensitive remarks concerning persons with disabilities on the show.
