An audition for a web series at Powai in Bombay on October 30 went horrendously wrong when the person auditioning children chose to hold them hostage for three hours. He was ultimately shot dead by the police which reached the building to save the children, a 75-year-old woman and the deceased’s staffer.
A 45-year-old social entrepreneur, who ran a project for the Maharashtra state government, held 17 children, aged between 12 and 15, an old lady and his staffer hostage at RA Studio in Mahavir Classik building at Powai yesterday afternoon. The children had gone to the studio for giving auditions. The crisis ended after a police commando team stormed the studio when negotiations failed. The police shot the businessman in the chest in self-defence after he fired from an air gun. He was then rushed to hospital where he was declared dead. The rescued persons were taken to SevenHills Hospital for medical examination. While the others were unharmed, the old lady sustained injury to her head and arm.
The businessman, Rohit Aarya, had released a video in the afternoon, saying that he wanted “simple answers” to some questions and threatened to set the place ablaze if there was any attempt to challenge him. The video went viral after he sent it to various media houses. Aarya did not elaborate on his demand in the video.
The police tried to negotiate with him for two hours but in vain. They then broke through a bathroom grille and entered the studio.
Aarya was the owner of Apsara Media. It is believed that he claimed that the state government owed him Rs. 2 crore. The claim has been dismissed by the state.
Incidentally, there was a very similar scene in A Thursday, a film starring Yami Gautam. In the film, Yami plays school teacher Naina Jaiswal, who calls the police station to say that she has taken 16 children hostage. Naina’s first demand is for Rs. 5 crore to be transferred to her bank account. Her second demand is to speak to the PM. Rohit Aarya chose Thursday — which was the final day of the 5-day auditions — to emulate the A Thursday scene. Children who had come for the audition were not only locals but from Kolhapur, Satara, Sangli and other parts of Maharashtra.
