4 min readNew DelhiApr 19, 2026 10:47 AM IST
Samay Raina recently broke the internet with the release of his stand-up special Still Alive on YouTube. Since then, the comedian has been making appearances on different podcasts, talking about the India’s Got Latent controversy. In a recent interview, Samay opened up about the financial impact of the row. He also recalled having a ‘fear’ of going bankrupt like Amitabh Bachchan.
For the unversed, Amitabh faced bankruptcy in 2000, after his company, Amitabh Bachchan Corporation Limited (ABCL), collapsed, leaving him with debts of around Rs 90 crore. At the time, he was entangled in 55 cases, had no money in his bank account, and creditors frequently threatened to seize his home.
During a conversation with Dostcast, Samay Raina shared that he had ‘lost everything’ after the India’s Got Latent controversy. “I lost the upcoming episodes because everyone was scared and didn’t want their episode to be uploaded. Lost the sponsors of those episodes, I had received their payments and gotten an FD done, invested them. Had to break the FD, ask for my money back. I was in a mess,” he said.
The comedian further added, “I had several projects lined up, even shot for ads, they asked for their money back. I had taken a deal from BookMyShow, where they had given me advance money for the whole tour, and all that money was invested. I was extremely scared. At that time, I didn’t know what I’ll do. I knew that no brand would come now.”
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Talking about his “biggest fear” of going bankrupt like Amitabh Bachchan, Samay Raina shared, “There was a feeling. My first biggest fear that I am going to go broke, in debt. The fear was that I’ll be like Amitabh Bachchan, when he went bankrupt. I was depressed, laying in bed in the US, Canada. When I was staying in bed, I just used to get up to go to the washroom, didn’t even open the curtain to look outside but read what people were writing on social media. I used to eat only mashed potatoes with fries. I realised that it was my depressive food. Balraj did everything to motivate me.”
He continued, “My India tour had gotten cancelled. I had taken the entire year’s money and bought land with it. I had to do something. When I came back to India, I called Raj Shamani and asked if he will do an ad with me. I wrote that thing, knowing that this will go viral, other brands will see, so I manufactured that.”
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After pitching similar ideas to other brands, Samay’s financial situation began to stabilise gradually. “Pitched a similar ad to another brand – mockery of how I was cancelled. Jokes were the only way out. Just like that, I got many brand assignments because reels went viral. The format became solid. I made that whole money back through my podcast. If anyone would ask about the case, I would always make a joke because I can’t be serious, the case was still going on in court. Then, we sold 70K tickets in Delhi – 8 shows in Talkatora,” he said.
India’s Got Latent controversy
In February last year, Samay Raina’s popular YouTube show India’s Got Latent became embroiled in a major controversy. The issue arose after YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia asked a contestant an explicit question about parents and sex during an episode. The incident triggered legal action against those involved and led to the removal of the show’s episodes from YouTube.
