Comedian and actor Vir Das took to his X account on Monday to clarify his identity in a viral social media post amid the long-awaited West Bengal election results, after being frequently tagged in posts related to Bengal.
In the post shared on X, Das said he is often tagged by anonymous users whenever incidents occur in Bengal with messages implying accountability or association. He addressed the trend directly and distanced himself from the assumptions tied to his name, which otherwise may suggest he is Bengali.
Read more: BJP takes early lead, Congress lags as per initial counting trends in Assam
“I’m half UP, half Bihari”
On May 4, Das put all connections of his name to Bengal to rest. He said, “Just putting it out there before today unfolds. My name is Das, but I’m actually not Bengali. I’m half UP, half Bihari.”
In his characteristic understated tone, he called out the “faceless” accounts on X and pointed to the trolling of celebrities like him in political matters and the culture of mass tagging them without any accountability.
{{/usCountry}}In his characteristic understated tone, he called out the “faceless” accounts on X and pointed to the trolling of celebrities like him in political matters and the culture of mass tagging them without any accountability.
{{/usCountry}}He wrote, “So, typically when anything happens in Bengal I get tagged by a bunch of facelesses (that’s a word) saying, 'Look what happened in your Bengal bro'.”
He further distanced himself from the presumed identity of being Bengali and said, “Just putting it out there before today unfolds. My name is Das, but I’m actually not Bengali.”
A user on X was surprised to know the new fact about him and wrote, “HALF BIHARI??? How am i learning of it only today. Howw. Why have we not totally claimed you yet?”
He ends the post wishing “Good Luck” for the verdict day in the West Bengal elections.
West Bengal Election Results
According to preliminary results from the Election Commission of India (ECI), which has begun tallying votes at all counting locations, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) appears to be on the rise in the state after 15 years.
This is a significant development in the TMC-ruled state. The majority in West Bengal is 148 seats.
As counting began on Monday, the BJP was leading in 155 seats, according to early patterns broadcast by TV channels. The TMC, led by Mamata Banerjee, was ahead with 121 seats.
Most exit polls in West Bengal show the BJP ahead of the ruling TMC.
People's Pulse, on the other hand, predicted a TMC victory, giving the party led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee an overwhelming majority of 177-187 seats. BJP at 95-110, the Left Front at 0-1, and the Congress at 1-3.