Kolkata nightclub faces severe backlash over chained, 'drugged' monkey act. Viral video

Screengrabs from the viral videos show the chained monkeys being petted by visitors. (Credit:@saikat11_/Twitter)

A nightclub in Kolkata faced severe criticism after videos emerged of its customers petting a chained monkey that appeared to be drugged. According to several accounts, the monkey was brought in by the club for a circus-themed party -- a claim that the club, Toyroom, has refuted. As the clip went viral, several people, including actor Swastika Mukherjee, expressed shock at the animal cruelty and called for the club to apologise.

On Saturday evening, one of the videos doing rounds on social media showed a woman cuddling the monkey which appeared to be in chains and unconscious. In another video, the chained monkey stood cornered as another woman tried to pet it.

Reacting to the video Swastika Mukherjee of Qala and Paatal Lok fame wrote, "I’m ashamed, to say the least! It’s disheartening to see what #toyroomkolkata did in the name of an act to stand out! Well, you sure did. For all the wrong reasons."

"This is cruelty to a different level. How low can you stoop, Toyroom Kolkata? And what is wrong with the people who have gone to party there and indulged in this cruel act? No one stopped this right there and then? What is wrong with human beings?"

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A post shared by Swastika Mukherjee (@swastikamukherjee13)

The uproar over social media continued as Toyroom apparently stopped social media users from tagging them in posts.

So #ToyRoomKolkata brought in this tiny monkey for its circus-themed night. Nothing, absolutely nothing can be more inhumane than this. @PetaIndia @Manekagandhibjp @AnushkaSharma @swastika24 @KolkataPolice @MamataOfficial @ParveenKaswan @ToyRoomLondon @PTI_News @ttindia pic.twitter.com/g57qZv12Q9

— Deblina Halder (@StoriesbyD) June 17, 2023

Meanwhile, reacting to the backlash, Toyroom released a statement in which it clarified that monkeys were not part of the events they planned.

"We would like to inform that Toyroom had no role to play in hiring the monkeys or the madaris. The madaris or caregivers of the monkeys approached us at the club and we very politely refused them to do any kind of activities inside. Agreeing to which, they moved to the ground level of the mall's entrance and sat there," the nightclub situated in Camac Street stated.

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A post shared by Toyroom kolkata (@toyroomkolkata)

It added that the monkeys were not injured or harmed as they were always with the madaris. "We care as much as everyone else for the animals and would never do such activities where they'd be harmed or caged. We sincerely apologise if we've hurt anyone's sentiments or feelings unintentionally.'

Toyroom also shared a screengrab of a couple of madaris performing with their monkeys on what they claimed was the ground floor of the mall in which the club is situated.

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