New Delhi: Actor turned politician Mukesh Khanna demanded that comedian Samay Raina’s face should be blackened and he should be paraded, on a donkey, across cities so that children can throw eggs and tomatoes at him. His statement on Instagram comes after Raina called him out in his stand-up special, Still Alive, uploaded on his YouTube channel on 7 April.
In an Instagram post, Khanna shared an image of himself in his famous Shaktimaan (1997-2005) costume, while Raina is shown sitting on a donkey, wearing the same T-shirt from his comeback show and a garland made of shoes. In the poster, Shaktimaan’s eyes emit laser beams at Raina’s face, which is blackened. The actor even called Raina a “roasted being” who is “burnt and cooked in the fire of filth.”
“A dog’s tail is always crooked. Keep it in a glass tube for years, take it out… it will still remain crooked. Samay Raina is the same. No matter how much you beat him or try to straighten him, he goes back to being crooked. Because he is not a simple, decent person. He is a ‘roasted’ being, burnt and cooked in the fire of filth,” the caption loosely translates to in English.
“The whole country scolded him, beat him… yet he came back again, shamelessly, ready to be beaten again. Now only one thing remains. His face should be blackened, he should be made to sit on a donkey, and paraded across cities and streets of the country. Where children throw eggs and tomatoes at him… because he insulted their superhero, Shaktimaan,” he captioned the post.
In the one-hour 20-minute special, Raina addressed the India’s Got Latent controversy in 2025, which unfolded due to a question asked by podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia on the show. The episode triggered widespread outrage, FIRs were filed, and the show was eventually shut down. And all episodes of the show were taken down from Raina’s YouTube channel as well.
In Still Alive, Raina said that the criticism came from all quarters. From politicians and celebrities like Khanna to comedian Sunil Pal, everyone came after him and his show.
Referring to Khanna, known for portraying Shaktimaan, Raina said, “Shaktimaan agaya tha uss time. Shaktimaan se kaise ladenge bhai. He said baccho ka kaisa hoga aise content dekhke (Shaktimaan came in at that time. How do we fight Shaktimaan? He said what will happen to children watching such content.)”
“Shaktimaan has killed children ‘fak-fak-fak karke’. How are you taking the moral high ground?” the comedian added.
But Raina’s statement wasn’t just a joke. There is reality to it. A 1999 BBC report, citing Indian media, revealed that 40 incidents linked to Shaktiman were reported, in which children were killed or injured while attempting his on-screen stunts.
As late as April 2002, in Thergaon from the Pimpri district of Pune, two boys jumped off from the terrace of their one-storied building, imitating Shaktiman, barely escaping permanent damage to their bodies.
The cases became a concern for Doordarshan after which Khanna had to tell kids, in the middle of the show, not to jump off buildings.
Raina’s comeback special already clocked over 18 million views within 24 hours of its release.
(Edited by Insha Jalil Waziri)