Bhojpuri actor Pawan Singh has found himself at the center of severe backlash and criticism after a recent controversy where he was accused of inappropriately touching actress Anjali Raghav on stage. The incident quickly grabbed attention, and following the outrage, the actor has now come forward to issue an apology to the actress.
Pawan Singh's Apology
Following Anjali Raghav's shocking announcement that she would be leaving the Bhojpuri film industry, citing the incident as the reason, Pawan Singh publicly apologised on Instagram. When Pawan was observed touching Anjali's waist on stage without getting her permission, the actress became agitated and the controversy began.
Pawan Singh repeatedly put his hand on Anjali's waist while claiming that something was stuck on it during an event in Lucknow. She was obviously upset and uncomfortable with his behaviour, but Pawan chose to ignore it, which only served to increase the criticism levelled at him.
"Mera aapke prati koi bhi ghalat intention nahi tha kyuki humlog kalakaar hai. Iske bawajood, agar aapko humari kisi bhi byawahaar se taqleef huyi ho toh uske liye main shama prarthi hoon (I had no wrong intentions towards you because we are artists. Even so, if you were hurt by any of my behavior, I sincerely apologize for it.)"
The controversy
Anjali took to Instagram on Saturday and shared long videos explaining what took place at the event.
She said in Hindi, "I have been very disturbed for the past two days...Do you think I would feel happy or enjoy being touched in public like that?" Anjali added, "Jab baad mein maine apne team member se pucha ki kuch laga hai, unhone kaha ki kuch bhi nahi laga tha. Tab mujhe bohot zyada bura laga, gussa aaya aur rona bhi aaya. Lekin mujhe samajh nahi aaya ki main kya karun? Kyunki vahan sab unka fan base tha, unko bhagwan bol rahe the aur khud ko bhakt bol bolke unke pairon main gir rahe the log (Later, when I asked one of my team members if there was actually something stuck, they told me that there was nothing at all. At that moment, I felt extremely bad, I got angry, and I even felt like crying. But I didn’t know what to do, because everyone there was part of his fan base, calling him God and falling at his feet while referring to themselves as his devotees.)"
Anjali's reaction to his apology
Soon after he shared his apology on social media, Anjali reacted to it and taking to her Instagram Story she wrote, "Pawan Singh ji ne apni galti ki manfi mangli hai. wo mujhse bade hai aur senior artist hai … maine unhe manf kar dia hai … mai is bat ko aur aage nahi badhana chahti jai shree ram."
Jyoti Singh, Pawan Singh's second wife, fuelled the flames with a mysterious Instagram post amid the ongoing controversy. She claimed in her letter that the actor-singer had been ignoring her for months, which heightened the discussion and scrutiny of him.
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