Comedian in trouble for Tendulkar video

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AFP

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Cricketer Sachin Tendulkar has a massive fan following in India

A popular Indian comedian may face charges after making a video that pokes fun at cricketer Sachin Tendulkar and Bollywood singer Lata Mangeshkar.

Tanmay Bhat had used Snapchat’s face swap feature to stage an argument between the two Indian icons.

Mumbai police is investigating complaints made by Hindu nationalist parties Shiv Sena and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS).

The reactions to the video have also set off a debate on social media.

Tanmay Bhat’s name has been the top trending topic on Twitter India for most of Monday, with social media users sharply divided over whether Bhat’s video had “crossed the line” in terms of free speech.

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Bhat clearly anticipated the backlash to the video even while publishing it, doing so with a tweet request: “When you guys write about me tomorrow can you please use my snapchat ID – it’s thetanmay thanks.”

He later tweeted at snapchat, asking them to “please pay me”.

Indians are extremely sensitive about insults to popular national icons.

Last year, British Airways was forced to issue an apology after a huge social media backlash for tweeting at Tendulkar asking him for his full name.

In 2014, tennis player Maria Sharapova was also pilloried on social media by Indians after she admitted that she had no idea who Tendulkar was.

Apart from lodging police complaints, a leader from the Hindu nationalist Shiv Sena party wrote to the chief minister of the western state of Maharashtra complaining about Bhat’s “deranged mentality”.

Indian media reported that the Mumbai police was investigating the complaints and looking into asking Google and YouTube to pull down the video.

Tanmay Bhat is a part of Indian comedy group All India Bhakchod (AIB) which was also forced to take off a “roast show” from YouTube after an intense row over its contents on social media.

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Comedian in trouble for Tendulkar video
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