Ali Asgar says he was molested while in character as Dadi at a Delhi wedding

Comedian Ali Asgar has said that he was once molested while he was in character as Dadi. They were putting their hands on my chest, they were pinching my butt,” the actor, known for playing female characters in drag on popular shows such as The Kapil Sharma Show, said in an interview.

Speaking to the Times of India, Ali recounted the story of the unfortunate evening at a Delhi wedding. “Wherever I go for such shows, I don’t let the anchor announce my name,” he said. “I just enter as Dadi.” He said that when he arrived at the wedding, “people were already drunk.”

And then he was attacked. A female colleague of his had to intervene to get him off stage. “I had a question then,” Ali continued. “Did they not realise that I was a man dressed as a woman? And even if they did, I was playing an old lady. Have they no shame?”

But not all experience of mistaken identity have been as terrible, he said. “Quite often, people are not able to tell that it is actually a guy playing a woman. I don’t know if that is a compliment,” he said. He also recounted a story of when Jacqueline Fernandes asked for his help in fixing her mic, and he had to remind her that he was a man.

“I am comfortable playing a female character, but as a performer I want to balance my roles,” he said. Ali will next be seen in Kanpur Wale Khuranas, comedian Sunil Grover’s upcoming sketch comedy show, in which he will also play a female character. He said that playing women has affected his career, as he is often offered similar roles.

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