On September 12, Munmun Dutta, who plays Babita Ji and Raj Anadkat, who plays the role of Tapu, son of Jethalal on popular television serial Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah, released statements on Instagram refuting the rumours about their real-life relationship. In her statement, Dutta called journalists out for publishing reports about personal life without consent. She also called out public hate-filled messages. She added that she was ashamed to call herself ‘India’s daughter’.

Munmun Dutta’s statement

Dutta shared two posts. In the first post, she ridiculed the media. She refuted the claims of the affair and claimed that the reports were imaginary and made up. She asked the media who should be held responsible for the damage they have done.

She said, “To the media and their zero credibility ‘journos’, Who has given u the right to post ‘IMAGINARY’ MADE UP’ articles in people’s name about their private life without their consent? R u liable for the damage that you cause to their lives with your reckless behaviour? You don’t stop at shoving your cameras on the face of a grieving woman who has just lost her love or lost her son, in a funeral, just for your trps. You can stoop to any level to create sensational articles/ headlines at the cost of someone’s dignity, but R U GOING TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR WRECKING HAVOC IN THEIR LIVES?? If No, then, YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF!!”

Dutta further called out the public for not only sharing the reports but also for hate-filled comments. She said that she expected better from the public. Dutta said that just for the sake of humour, people age shame, slut shame and mom shame women on social media. She added that she had spent 13 years in the industry, and people did not even think for 13 minutes before ripping her dignity apart.

She said, “To the general public, I had far better expectations from you. But the FILTH that you have showered in the comment section, even from the so-called ‘LITERATE’ ones proves how regressive a society we are.

Women are constantly AGE SHAMED, SLUT SHAMED, MOM SHAMED, at the cost of YOUR humour. Whether YOUR humour drives someone to the edge of a mental breakdown or not, is NEVER your concern. 13 years of entertaining people, and it didn’t take 13 minutes for anyone of you to RIP MY DIGNITY APART. So next time someone is clinically depressed or driven to take their own lives, pause and think whether it was YOUR WORDS that drove that person to the edge or not.

Today, I am ashamed of calling myself a DAUGHTER OF INDIA.”

Raj Anadkat’s statement

In his statement, Anadkat urged everyone who has been writing about him to think of the repercussions that can happen in his life before publishing a report based on rumours that too without his consent. He said, “To everyone, who has been constantly writing about me, THINK of the repercussions that can happen in my life because of your ‘COOKED UP’ (false) stories and that too about my life without my consent. All the creative people out there please channelise your creativity somewhere else it will be helpful to you. May God bless them with good sense.”

The rumours of Dutta and Anadkat dating

On September 9, it was reported that Dutta and Anadkat were dating in real life. There were reports that their families were also aware of the alleged relationship. Citing a source, a report mentioned, “Their respective families too, are not in the dark. Nobody teases them; they don’t try to steal moments with each other. The love story is actually old, and one wonders how it hasn’t come out till date.”

Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashma, inspired from Gujarati humour, satire column ‘Duniya ne undha chashma’ by columnist Taarak Mehta has been on air for almost 13 years now. The original Gujarati columns were slightly different from the show and appeared in the weekly magazine Chitralekha.