Samay Raina's comeback: Comedian chills with The Rebel Kid, shares photo of reunion with Apoorva Mukhija on Instagram

Mint

15-05-2025

Comedian Samay Raina returned to Instagram after months of silence. His return followed a controversy over alleged vulgarity in his show, India's Got Latent.
As he plans to restart his stand-up career with a new tour, Raina shared a series of pictures in Instagram Stories. The photos showed him meeting friends like Gursimran Khamba and Tanmay Bhat.
The Instagram Stories also showed a screenshot of a video call with his parents. It also showed him in the gym.
However, the photo that probably turned many heads was the one with Apoorva Mukhija, also known as The Rebel Kid. The social media influencer, who became a controversial figure after her appearance on India's Got Latent, was also named in the same FIR. Samay Raina's Instagram Stories on May 14
On May 13, Samay made his first public appearance after announcing his comeback tour. At a Mumbai web series screening, he greeted fans and posed for photos.
One of them asked, 'Bhai, show wapis kab aa raha hai? (Bro, when is the show coming back?).'
Samay Raina chuckled and said, 'Ab to…(Now, it is…).' His reaction apparently hinted at the uncertainty around the return of India's Got Latent. However, his photo with Apoorva seems to show that their friendship remains strong despite the controversy.
Mukhija appeared on the reality show along with popular YouTubers, Ranveer Allahbadia and Ashish Chanchlani, and comedian Jaspreet Singh.
Apoorva Mukhija had a bumpy ride in her career after the controversy. On Instagram, she unfollowed everyone, including Samay Raina. Then, she deleted all her photos on the social media platform.
Later, she shared an emotional video and revealed the height of being trolled after her appearance on Samay Raina's show. She even received rape threats and death threats.
After the controversy and legal challenges, Samay Raina disappeared from social media as if he never existed. There was radio silence from his side.
Raina first reacted during the Pahalgam terror attack. Since then, he has shared many Stories. The standup comedian, who has a dedicated fan following worldwide, returned to YouTube with an announcement video of his next world tour.
The video, which subtly addressed the Latent controversy, got nearly 4 million views on YouTube within a couple of days. On Instagram, the Reel has gone viral with 32 million views. One of the clips in the video shows him video-calling his parents.
'Will you say hello? Not to me,' says Samay Raina and turns to the massive crowd attending his show as his fans cheered for him.
On May 14, Raina posted many stories at once. In his last Story of the night, he clarified why. It was because he felt emotionally suffocated.
In an emotional message, he thanked his fans for their love and support. He wrote, 'I love you all. I'm so happy to be experiencing all this love. I can't wait to see you guys in my shows abroad and in India. I'm so grateful to all of you. Goodnight.'