Porsche case: No, the minor did not release a ‘rap video’. The media got it wrong

After the public outcry over the Pune Porsche accident, a video of a rap song was posted on social media. 

A man in the video mocked the accident, singing, “Kuch sunoge,  karke baithe main nashe in my Porsche, saamne aaya couple mere ab woh hai neeche  sound so cliche, sorry gaadi chag gayi aap pe, satra ki umra khoob paise mere baap pe,ek din main mil gaye mujhe bail, fir se dikhaunga sadak ka khel.”

Loosely translated, he said, “I sat in my Porsche intoxicated. A couple came in front of my car. But now they’re under it. It sounds so clichéd. Sorry I ran over you. At the age of 17, my father has a lot of money…I got bail, will again show my game on the road.”

Several Marathi media portals claimed the person in the video was the 17-year-old son of a real estate tycoon who’s accused of driving the Porsche on May 19 and killing two people. The minor was granted bail, which was then rescinded, and is now in an observation home. 

As the media ran with the story, it unleashed a new wave of rage against the minor on social media, accusing him of being a “psychopath” who was “mocking” people. Newslaundry is not linking to these tweets since they identify the minor.

But the man in the video is not the minor at all. It’s a content creator called Aryan Dev Neekhra, who posts his work under the name Cringistaan on Instagram. He claims to be a “meme marketer” with a company called No Gravity Media in Delhi’s Vikas Marg Road, and his father is an office bearer with the RSS. Originally from Madhya Pradesh and now living in Delhi, Neekhra studied at Happy Days School in Shivpuri and then Amity University in Gwalior. His LinkedIn profile says he has a “passion for creativity and witty personality”.

Pune police commissioner Amitesh Kumar told Newslaundry, “We are definitely going to take action against the person who made that video. Our investigation is going on and soon we will get hold of him.”

Neekhra told Newslaundry he made the video because he wanted to “spotlight the issue”.

Why choose this video to do it? He said, “Actually, nobody was taking any action. Everybody was just talking about it and it was not bringing any effect. So, when I talked about it in this way and made a rap about it, it got into the spotlight. I made a satirical parody to bring spotlight, not to harm anybody. These days, only such kind of content trends. But yes, I made a mistake by using abusive words.”

It is unclear what “effect” he thinks his video had.

‘Biggest update, wave of anger’

But sections of the media had already claimed the video was by the minor, not Neekhra. The minor’s mother also released a video clarifying that the man in the video is not her son. She also appealed to the police to protect her child.

TV9 Marathi called it the “biggest update” in the case. The anchor said, “The accused can be seen singing rap songs in this video where he is abusing people.”

ABP Majha published a story on the “arrogance” of the minor, claiming that after he got bail from the Juvenile Justice Board, he “made a rap song” to abuse people. “Because of this act, there is a wave of anger in the public,” the report said.

Maharashtra Times said the minor, after “partying on the money of the father, killing two innocent people, and then getting out on bail”, released this “rap song”. To its credit, the daily said it could not verify the video.

NDTV Marathi said the video showed the “arrogance” of the minor who purportedly made this video – which, to remind you, he didn’t – to “celebrate his bail”. The report weakly added that the video was unverified.

Newslaundry reported in detail on the Porsche case, including how the minor was served pizza at the police station and was visited by an MLA at 3 am. Read our report here.

Update at 8.30 pm, May 24: This report was updated with quotes from Neekhra.

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