Indian Idol’s Aditya Narayan on Neha Kakkar being forcibly kissed on stage: ‘He had a tattoo of Neha, must have immense love for her ’

Indian Idol host and singer Aditya Narayan has reacted to a recent episode on the reality show when a contestant forcibly kissed show’s judge Neha Kakkar on stage. He called the incident ‘shocking’ but doesn’t know if the show’s producers have taken any action against the man.

Speaking to The Times of India, Aditya said he tried to safeguard Neha as the show’s host but what happened later was ‘not in his hands’. He added that the man ‘must have immense love for Neha’ as he had a tattoo of her on his arm. “You can’t really foresee these things. It’s not a normal thing. Judges have come on stage a thousand times. I am sure he didn’t mean it in an inappropriate way. I understand what it is to have fans who are obsessed. I know this man has a tattoo of Neha on his hands. So in some way this man must have immense love for her. You kind of feel for them as well. But you need to make them aware of where to draw the line,” he said.

Aditya said he was ‘thankful’ the man went for a kiss on Neha’s cheek and nothing more. “Thankfully, there was nothing more than a peck on the cheek else I am sure there would have been dire consequences. I would say he is lucky on that matter. And Neha being a kind woman, I think even she didn’t take it in an inappropriate way. But of course, we will be careful. Neha is not just important to our show, she is one of the leading female singers of our country. Any women, we have to be careful about everything and anything” he said.

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During a recent audition episode of the show’s 11th season, a contestant arrived on stage and asked Neha if she recognised him. A confused Neha took to stage to meet him and give him a hug but the man went in for a kiss. Aditya pushed him away from her. Sony Entertainment Television, which airs the show, shared promos on Twitter, featuring the whole incident. The channel was called out online for cashing in on what was a distressing moment for Neha. “So pathetic by @SonyTV, for money they are doing anything, promoting such harassment is really appalling for me,” wrote one. “The fact that @SonyTV has not given any statement regarding the harassment of @iAmNehaKakkar , gives a great insight into the fact that grabbing big TRPs is more important than being a human and doing the right things.#Shame #IndianIdol believes in #trpbeforehumanity,” wrote another.

Aditya reacted to Sony’s decision saying he doesn’t know who took the call. “When you are on TV and anything which is not regular, people call it drama and for TRP. I am an employee of the show. Only what I do on the show is in my hands… to an extent. This is a marketing call and I don’t know who have taken this call or who is responsible. I didn’t even know the promo was played on TV. As far as sensationalizing this for TRP… let me clear – No, Indian Idol is not a show where you need to sensationalize such a matter for getting ratings. You have good talent and that alone should suffice to make the show a success,” he said.

Earlier this week, co-judge Vishal Dadlani said he wanted to call the police on the man but Neha chose not to. “I suggested that the Police be called, but Neha decided to let the guy off the hook. He definitely needs psychiatric help, and we will try to help him get that, if we can. #IndianIdol11,” he said.

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