'Doesn't change anything': Kiara Advani omits POCSO-charged Jani Master's name from Game Changer post following backlash

Kiara Advani is backtracking. And it's only for the better. To clue you in, earlier this week Shankar Shanamugham's pan-India endeavour, the Ram Charan-starrer Game Changer, had another big drop lined up — Dhop from the film's album. The psychedelic aesthetics and quite honestly indescribable vibe of the music video threw many off. But this was nothing in comparison to the shoutout throwback post that Kiara Advani came up with to counter the criticism. It's safe to say that everyone has forgotten about Dhop. The newest controversy in town instead is Kiara's caption carrying choreographer Jani Master's name in it. "I remember seeing @alwaysjani masters choreography and thinking how are we going to do this, but that’s the beauty of our job , always learning something new.." is what the excerpt read.

Well lo and behold, it isn't there anymore. The caption edit obviously comes in the wake of the intense backlash Kiara faced for being careless enough to appreciate her collaboration with a POCSO-charged public figure.

Earlier this year in September, Jani Master was booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act for allegations levied by a former female employee who accused him of rape and mental harassment. She was reportedly 16 years old at the time of the offences. As the choreographer stepped out on bail in October, his National Film Award, which he had earned for choreographing Dhanush in the song Megham Karukkatha from Tamil film Thiruchitrambalam (2022) was suspended by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

It is also worth noting that not only Kiara, but other notable names are also facing raised eyebrows for their past and present professional association with Jani Master. Recent examples are Shraddha Kapoor and Rajkummar Rao for their Stree 2 song Aayi Nai and Varun Dhawan and Keerthy Suresh for their Baby John track Nain Matakka. Past associations include the likes of Rashmika Mandanna for Pushpa: The Rise's (2021) Srivalli, Thalapathy Vijay and Pooja Hegde for Beast's (2022) Arabic Kuthu, Rajinikanth and Tamannaah for Jailer's (2023) Kaavaalaa and Shahid Kapoor and Kriti Sanon for Teri Baaton Mein Aisa Uljha Jiya's Laal Peeli Ankhiyaan.

What's your take on Kiara's late but much-needed damage control?