Controversy's favourite child Ram Gopal Varma unfazed as he is slammed for his insensitive April Fool joke about testing positive for Coronavirus
Upala KBR (MID-DAY; April 3, 2020)

When he is not making headlines for his outrageous comments, Ram Gopal Varma is ruffling feathers with his morbid brand of humour. On Wednesday, controversy's favourite child was at it again as he posted a tweet that read, "My doctor just told me that I tested positive with Corona." As word spread, the filmmaker, in a subsequent tweet, claimed that it was an "April Fool joke". Although he apologised on social media, he was widely criticised for his insensitive tweets.

"The only way to remain sane in such a [grim] situation is to joke about it, else we will get into depression. I knew I would get trolled for it. I believe a complaint has been filed against me for spreading false information. But it was meant as an April Fool joke, nothing else," laughs Varma. Did he not worry about hurting people's sentiments with his behaviour? "I [put out the tweet] because I was getting bored," says the director, who is confined to his Hyderabad office.
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BJP seeks action against RGV

Sanjeev Shivadekar (MID-DAY; April 3, 2020)

Thr Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has asked the Mumbai police to verify Ram Gopal Varma’s tweet and initiate action against him for the socalled “joke”. “If the message is a prank, then the police should book the director for creating panic,” Vivekanand Gupta, BJP general secretary, told mid-day.

Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, on March 31, issued a statement that citizens should not create and circulate April Fool’s Day messages on the current health crisis. The police had warned they will initiate action under the Information Technology Act against the erring people. On Monday, the Mumbai police had booked one person from the city for spreading rumours.

Slamming Varma for his insensitive joke, Gupta added, “Everyone is equal before the law. If common man is booked, the police should register an offence against Varma too.”