Choreographer booked for slapping 7-year-old to ‘discipline’ him

In their complaint to BKC police, the parents said they confronted the choreographer after his first misbehaviour surfaced on October 4. That’s when the mother of the child noticed a red mark on her son’s face after he returned from the group’s practice and expressed her concern

MUMBAI: A Thane-based family has alleged that a Bollywood choreographer -- Ronak Chheda – had repeatedly slapped their seven-year-old child during practice sessions of a dance performance with the intention of “disciplining” him. Chheda has been the choreographer for the latest season of Bigg Boss.

Choreographer booked for slapping 7-year-old to ‘discipline’ him

While there were sporadic complaints about Chheda since the beginning of October, the latest incident occurred when the child was “disciplined” during practice sessions at the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre, BKC, ahead of prime minister Narendra Modi’s inauguration of the 141st International Olympic Committee session at the Jio World Centre, on October 14.

In their complaint to BKC police, the parents said they confronted the choreographer after his first misbehaviour surfaced on October 4. That’s when the mother of the child noticed a red mark on her son’s face after he returned from the group’s practice and expressed her concern.

“He first dismissed it as make-up residue. However, on October 7, when he refused to go for practice, I pressed him for information. He let on that Ronak sir had pinched his cheeks, hit him and yelled at him in front of other children,” the mother said in her statement to the police. When she confronted the choreographer, he said the child was being mischievous and not listening to anyone.

She let the matter rest after a stern warning, and over the next few days noted that her son seemed happy returning from the classes. The reason behind his cheerfulness was because “Ronak sir had not come for practice for the last couple of days”.

“On October 13, during the practice session at NMACC, Chheda allegedly repeated the act in front of the entire group. Despite the show going very well the next day, my child looked upset. Over the next few days, he became very quiet and didn’t interact with me or his grandparents,” the mother told the police.

Subsequently, the child spoke about exacting revenge from Chheda for the constant abuse. On October 23, the mother said in her statement, to understand her son’s negative feelings, she indulged in a game of role-play, where she pretended to be Chheda.

“That’s when he expressed his anger about the choreographer pinching his cheeks and slapping him in front of the other children between October 4 and October 8 at the practice hall in Oshiwara,” she told the police. “This occurred during bus rides as well.”

The child said Chheda had slapped him repeatedly after another child in the group complained about him. “When I asked why he had kept the matter to himself, he started weeping and felt that he was being slapped because he was not a good boy,” the mother said.

The child’s family approached the BKC police on October 31 to lodge a complaint against Chheda. After registering the complaint, the matter was transferred to the Amboli police for investigation as the first instance of abuse happened in their jurisdiction.

Deputy commissioner of police for zone 9 Krishnakant Upadhyay confirmed that a case had been registered against Chheda under section 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) of the Indian Penal Code and section 75 (cruelty to a child) of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015. Investigation in the matter is underway, he added.