Anurag Basu on Super Dancer 3 row: ‘Will not defend this because I understand how embarrassing it was for the parents’

Anurag Basu, who was one of the judges on Super Dancer: Chapter 3, has reacted to the clip that’s gone viral, which shows a minor contestant being asked inappropriate questions. The filmmaker told The Times of India in a new interview that he will not defend the show after the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) issued a notice to the show’s makers for airing content that showed ‘inappropriate and sexually explicit questions’ being asked to a child. Also read: Child rights panel notice to Sony TV for ‘inappropriate’ content in dance show

In a video that resurfaced recently and went viral, a segment from Super Dancer: Chapter 3 allegedly showed judges asking a minor contestant ‘inappropriate and sexually explicit questions’ about his parents on stage. NCPCR has demanded that the episode be removed from all platforms. The body issued a notice, accusing Sony Pictures Networks of airing ‘inappropriate content’ on Super Dancer Chapter 3 in one of its episodes during 2018-19.

Anurag on Super Dancer 3 controversy

Now, Anurag Basu, who was one of the judges on the show at the time, alongside Shilpa Shetty and Geeta Kapur, has reacted to the controversy. “I will not defend this because I understand how embarrassing this was for the parents, and I am a father of two kids myself. Super Dancer is a kids’ dance reality show, and children often say things innocently. We shoot with them for hours, and they say so many things, which are sometimes not in anyone’s control. I agree that I should not have directed the conversation towards something that led the contestant to say things that embarrassed his parents,” Anurag Basu told The Times of India.

He admitted that as a judge, he too has a responsibility. Anurag said in the same interview, “I also feel that we should draw a line when it comes to asking questions to contestants. It is important to be careful while interacting with children because they innocently say things that may not be appropriate. So, ideally, this part could have been edited, but that was not in my control… It is important that we, as judges, exercise this responsibility and be cautious in the questions we ask. I think after this, the kids too will be cautious while saying anything. It is important that such things don’t happen. This is my personal opinion. I am speaking here as a judge of a reality show and not on behalf of the channel. I felt it was my responsibility to clear the air because I am aware that this clip has gone viral.”

What NCPCR said in its notice

“The Commission has come across a video on Twitter from your kid’s dance show called Super Dancer: Chapter 3 which was aired on Sony Entertainment Television, wherein it is seen that the judges on the show were asking the minor child vulgar and sexually explicit questions regarding his parents on stage,” the notice from NCPCR read.

It added that the commission is of the view that all the questions asked to the minor child were ‘inappropriate and disturbing in nature and not meant to be asked to children’. The NCPCR said that the network’s actions have violated provisions under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, the Information Technology Act, 2000, as well as the Commission’s guidelines on child and adolescent participation in the entertainment industry.