Munawar Faruqui Detained During Raid At Mumbai Hookah Bar, Released Later

Stand-up comedian and reality TV star Munawar Faruqui was among 14 people detained during a raid at a hookah parlour in Mumbai, police said on Wednesday.

The Big Boss 17 winner was later released, news agency ANI said quoting a Mumbai police official.

According to police,the hookah parlour in the city’s Fort area was being run illegally and Rs 4,400 in cash and nine hookah pots worth Rs 13,500 were seized during the raid on Tuesday. 

The raid began around 10.30 pm on Tuesday and continued till 5 am of Wednesday, an official said.

A case has been registered under sections of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act. The police are still conducting a search at the location.

“During the raid, the police found stand-up comedian Munawar Faruqui and others smoking hookahs at the joint. We also have a video of their act. We detained Faruqui and others, but they were later allowed to go as the sections slapped against them were bailable,” a senior police official told news agency PTI.

Faruqui and other were served notices and allowed to leave, he added. 

The 32-year-old reality TV star became popular as a stand-up comedian and rapper on YouTube a few years ago.

He first made headlines in 2021 when he spent a month in jail after complaints were filed against him for hurting religious sentiments after he made remarks on Hindu deities during a stand-up show.

Following the outrage, the comedian announced he would quit comedy after 12 of his shows were cancelled within two months due to threats from right-wing groups.

In 2022, Mr Faruqui made a comeback through reality TV show “Lock Upp”, where participants lived in a “jail” and performed tasks to earn money as “inmates”. He won the show’s first season.