The BRICS TimesSamay Raina shares financial struggles after India’s Got Latent controversy. He lost brand deals and broke fixed deposits to pay back sponsors.
Comedian Samay Raina is making waves again with his new special, Still Alive. This follows the massive drama surrounding his show, India’s Got Latent, last year. In a chat on Dostcast, Samay discussed how the row hit his wallet. He admitted he feared becoming bankrupt like superstar Amitabh Bachchan.
Samay Raina details financial losses following show controversy
Samay shared that the controversy caused him to “lose everything” almost overnight. He noted, “I lost all the upcoming episodes because everyone was scared and didn’t want their episode to be uploaded. I also lost the sponsors for those episodes. I had already received their payments and invested them in fixed deposits. I had to break those FDs and return the money. I was in a mess.”
The comic also spoke about living with constant anxiety. “I had several projects lined up and had even shot for ads, but they asked for their money back. I had also signed a deal with BookMyShow, where they had given me an advance for the entire tour, and all that money was already invested. I was extremely scared. At that time, I didn’t know what I would do. I knew no brand would come on board. My biggest fear was that I would go broke and fall into debt, like what happened with Amitabh Bachchan,” he said.
Amitabh Bachchan’s major financial crisis in the late 90s
In the late 1990s, Amitabh Bachchan faced a huge crisis. His company, Amitabh Bachchan Corporation Limited (ABCL), collapsed. This failure reportedly left him with a massive debt of $₹90$ crore. He dealt with many legal cases and pressure from lenders. At one point, he almost lost his home before making a comeback.
Understanding the India’s Got Latent controversy
In February 2025, Ranveer Allahbadia, Ashish Chanchlani, and Apoorva Mukhija joined Samay’s show as judges. A comment by Ranveer about parenting and sex caused a huge online backlash. Multiple FIRs were filed against Samay and the other creators. Samay had to pull the show from YouTube. Later, the Supreme Court allowed Ranveer to restart his podcast in March.
In his new special, Samay claimed Ranveer told the controversial joke eight times. Only one version stayed in the final edit, leading to the outrage. Samay admitted the situation hurt his mental health and made him feel helpless. However, fans are now excited as Samay has teased a second season of the show.
