The popular Indian comedy collective All India Bakchod (AIB) has faced a massive internal crisis in 2015. Star comedian Tanmay Bhat had to officially stepp away from his role as Chief Executive Officer of the company he co-founded. The sudden exit came amidst a wave of #MeToo allegations on social media that had heavily impacted high-profile figures across the Indian entertainment and industries.

The decision was officially revealed through a public statement issued by the comedy group's human resources department, signaling a highly uncertain future for the once-booming production company.

The controversy initially erupted on October 4, 2015, when writer and comedian Mahima Kukreja posted a detailed social media thread accusing former AIB member Utsav Chakraborty of sending unsolicited explicit images. Crucially, the allegations revealed that senior leadership at AIB had been informed about this inappropriate workplace behaviour years earlier but chose to ignore it.

Tanmay Bhat publicly admitted that he knew about the complaints and had confronted Utsav Chakraborty personally, but failed to cut ties or stop collaborating with him on projects. Addressing his failure to protect employees, Tanmay Bhat then stated, "I should've ended ties then, and I didn't, and it is my fault. I'm truly sorry. I should've acted stronger."

 

In their official press release monitoring the unfolding situation, AIB stated, “We have been closely monitoring the sequence of events on social media around the allegations against AIB and also against our co-founder and CEO, Tanmay Bhat. We cannot overlook Tanmay's role...” Vidhi Jotwani, the head of human resources at AIB, confirmed his immediate departure, adding, “Truthfully, we do not know what this means for the future of AIB or whether there is one.”

Tanmay Bhat was not the only founding member exiting the group. An anonymous woman also leveled separate allegations of sexual harassment against co-founder Gursimran Khamba. While Gursimran Khamba released a personal statement denying that he had violated consent, the organisation decided it was prudent to place him on a temporary leave of absence until further clarity is reached.

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With its two most senior partners completely out of action, the Mumbai-based digital agency which shot to national fame following its controversial celebrity roast video featuring Bollywood stars Ranveer Singh and Arjun Kapoor had halted its day-to-day operations. Following this the Indian comedy collective All India Bakchod (AIB) effectively shut down in May 2019.