Comedian Samay Raina has opened up about the financial and emotional toll the India’s Got Latent controversy took on him, saying he feared going bankrupt, just like veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan, at one point.

Speaking on a recent episode of the podcast Dostcast, Samay said the fallout from the controversy led to significant financial losses and uncertainty about his future.

Samay revealed that he “lost everything” due to the controversy. He said, “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.”

He further spoke about the fear and instability he experienced during that period.

“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.

Bachchan had faced a severe financial crisis in the 1990s after his company, Amitabh Bachchan Corporation Limited (ABCL), collapsed, reportedly leaving him with debts of around Rs 90 crore.

The India’s Got Latent controversy dates back to February 2025, when YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia and content creators Ashish Chanchlani and Apoorva Mukhija appeared as panelists on the YouTube comedy show. A remark by Ranveer about parents and sex triggered widespread backlash on social media, leading to multiple FIRs against the panelists and Samay.

Following the outrage, Samay was forced to remove the show from YouTube, while Ranveer later issued a public apology. In March, the Supreme Court allowed Ranveer to resume his podcast.

In his recent comedy special, Still Alive, Samay claimed that Ranveer had cracked the controversial joke eight times during the episode, but only one instance was retained. He also said the episode had a deep impact on his mental health and left him feeling helpless.

Despite the setback, Samay has indicated that a second season of India’s Got Latent is in the works.