Rahat Fateh Ali Khan issues clarification after hitting his employee with shoe

On Saturday night, a video of Pakistani singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan went viral video on social media where he was purportedly assaulting a man. The video was posted by a user on X (formerly Twitter). In the disturbing visuals, the Qawwali singer is seen slapping and brutally hitting the individual while enquiring about a bottle.

The man was heard saying, "I have no idea about it''. People who were present at the scene were trying to pull the singer away from the man to save him. Post the video started doing the rounds on social media, netizens slammed the Pakistani singer left, right and centre. Later, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan issued a clarification, calling it a ''personal issue''.

Samaa TV, a Pakistani broadcaster, identified the man as an employee of the 'O Re Piya' singer. The broadcaster expressed concern over the rise in violent behaviour amongst singers.

Famous singer Rahat Fateh Ali khan beating his servent for bottle of Alcohol pic.twitter.com/9DZwYxgPmV

— Ghulam Abbas Shah (@ghulamabbasshah) January 27, 2024

In the clip, the singer asks for a bottle from the man, who says that he doesn't know about it. The singer sternly warns him, "Main tujhe maruga (I will beat you)'' as he asks him to find the bottle. 

An X user, sharing the video, wrote, "Famous singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan beating his servant for a bottle of Alcohol''.

Netizens called out Rahat Fateh Ali Khan for his behaviour. After which, he clarified that it was a personal matter between an ustad (teacher) and his shagrid (disciple). He shared a video on the microblogging site that featured the man who is his student, his father, to explain what happened.

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

بوتل میں پیر صاحب کا دم کیا ہوا پانی تھا pic.twitter.com/tTwQqkUS5n

— Tariq Mateen (@tariqmateen) January 27, 2024

Rahat Fateh Ali Khan also said he had apologised to his student after the incident. The student also clarified that he had misplaced a bottle containing holy water.

The student said in the video, "There was no ill intention behind his actions. He is like my father. He loves us a lot. The man who is spreading this video is trying to defame my ustad''.