A Bengali actor was allegedly served beef steak at an eatery in West Bengal's Kolkata despite ordering a mutton dish. Sayak Chakraborty, who is also a social media influencer, reportedly shared a video of his interaction with the waiter and manager of the Park Street eatery, that went viral online.
In the clip, the actor is seen asking the staff how come he was served the beef steak and also said that he consumed parts of it "unknowingly presuming it to be mutton".
“Do you know I'm a Brahmin?”, the actor can be heard asking the staff in the viral clip.
According to the actor, the issue became clear when him and his companion were served a second steak, despite only one steak having been ordered. When asked for clarification, the actor was reportedly told by the waiter he had ordered two steaks-one mutton and one beef. "That is when I protested," Sayak said, as quoted by news agency PTI.
The viral clip also showed the waiter and the manager of the Park Street eatery apologising to Sayak and his female friend. While some empathised with the social media influencer, others questioned his intent behind posting the clip.
Several questioned why the actor posted the clip after having tasted the beef and other accused him being a “BJP agent” and trying to stoke communal passion.
{{/usCountry}}Several questioned why the actor posted the clip after having tasted the beef and other accused him being a “BJP agent” and trying to stoke communal passion.
{{/usCountry}}Amid uproar, Sayak deleted the initial video and posted another, clarifying that he didn't intend to incite tensions. "I have no intention of triggering Hindu-Muslim riots. I have Muslim friends, I have celebrated Eid at my friend Riyaz's home, and my content has always promoted communal harmony," he said. “I firmly believe religion should never be a barrier to friendship.”
Sayak also said he was mentally distraught after realising he had unknowingly consumed beef, PTI news agency reported.
"I have previously been called a 'state government stooge' simply for attending events organised by the chief minister, but I never protested. Today, I am being branded a BJP agent without any basis. Politics has nothing to do with this," Sayak said.
He said that he would've raised the same question to a Hindu waiter: “Would you eat beef if it were served to you unknowingly?”. Sayak noted that while restaurants may witness a huge rush at dinner time, such occurrences can't go unchallenged.
On the issue of flagging the issue after the meal, Sayak clarified that him and his friend had only tasted it. The actor has filed a police complaint against the waiter, whose identity was not revealed by the cops.