Rahat Fateh Ali Khan thrashes man with shoe in viral video; calls it 'personal matter' in clarification

Rahat Fateh Ali Khan with his disciple and his father

Iconic Pakistani singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan was seen thrashing a man in a video that went viral on social media. The Qawwali singer later issued an explanation video where he downplayed the incident and claimed that the man in the video was his disciple.

In the video doing the rounds on social media, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan was seen repeatedly hitting and slapping a man while asking him about a "bottle". The man is seen pleading with the singer saying that he has no idea bout it. In another part of the video, some people can be seen trying to pull the singer away to save the student.

The graphic video, circulating online, reportedly shows Khan repeatedly slapping and kicking the employee, even using his shoes as weapons, Samaa TV reported. Voices can be heard pleading for him to stop, highlighting the severity of the alleged incident and raising serious questions about his conduct and sending shockwaves through the Pakistani music industry and beyond.

The incident raises concerns about the singer's behaviour and its impact on the well-being of his employees. Such an egregious violation of humanity is disheartening, especially from an individual celebrated for his artistic contributions, Samaa TV reported.

Samaa TV quoted sources suggesting that such violent behaviour among singers, often attributed to substance abuse, has become a worrying trend. The incident serves as a stark reminder of the complexities behind the glamorous facade of the music industry, where even celebrated artists like Rahat Fateh Ali Khan are not immune to allegations of misconduct and abuse

After the video went viral and started making headlines, Pakistani singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, who is also the nephew of legendary Qawwali singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan released a clarification video about the incident. In the video, he said that it was a personal matter between an "ustad and his shagird (teacher and disciple)". The video also featured the man who was being beaten up in the video and his father.

"This is about a personal issue between an ustad and shagird. He is like my son. This is how the relation is between a teacher and his disciple. If a disciple does something good, I shower my love on him. If he does something wrong, he is punished," he said in the video.

The man who was beaten said in the video that he had misplaced a bottle containing holy water which led to the incident in the viral video. He defended his ustad by saying, "Ustad ji came and apologised to me. He is my father, murshid, guru and there is nothing wrong with a father punishing his son. Creating a controversy over this video is a way of blackmailing my ustad, he said," he added. The man's father also defended Mr. Khan highlighting the relations between the ustad and shagird in the field of Qawwali.