Anurag Basu Admits Super Dancer 3 'Vulgar' Incident Was 'Embarrassing', Says 'I Should Not Have...'

Super Dancer Chapter 3 landed in trouble recently after the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) accused the judges of the kids’ dance reality show of asking ‘vulgar and sexually explicit questions’ to one of the contestants. The show that aired in 2019 was judged by Shilpa Shetty, Geeta Kapur and Anurag Basu.

Days after, Anurag Basu has now admitted that whatever happened on the show was ’embarrassing’ and that he should have avoided it. “I will not defend this because I understand how embarrassing this was for the parents, and I am a father of two kids myself,” he told E-Times.

“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,” the filmmaker added.

Anurag Basu also shared that a line should be drawn while asking questions to contestants. He further stressed the importance of being ‘careful’ while interacting with children and admitted that the scene which drew backlash could have been edited. However, he also made it clear that it wasn’t in his hands.

“It is important that we, as judges, exercise this responsibility and be cautious in the questions we ask. I think after this (clip going viral), 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,” he said.

Last month, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) issued a notice against Sony Pictures Networks asking the channel to remove Super Dancer 3’s said episode from all platforms immediately. It also specified that the questions which were asked to a minor child were allegedly ‘inappropriate and disturbing’ and were not meant to be asked to children.