'Be a Mohammad, not Chopra': Richa Chadha takes a swipe at Deepak Chopra over Epstein Files
Bollywood actress Richa Chadha slammed Indian-American author Deepak Chopra after his name appeared in the Epstein files. See her post on X here.
The newly-released Epstein files have mentioned Indian-American author Deepak Chopra. Some emails allegedly showed him communicating with convicted criminal Jeffrey Epstein.
After the email went viral online, Deepak Chopra issued a statement on social media on Thursday. Bollywood actress Richa Chadha also criticised him for his response.
What did author Deepak Chopra say about his mention on Epstein files?
Author Deepak Chopra took to X and reacted to his name being mentioned in the Epstein files. In his X post, he wrote, "I am deeply saddened by the suffering of the victims in this case, and I unequivocally condemn abuse and exploitation in all forms. I want to be clear: I was never involved in, nor did I participate in, any criminal or exploitative conduct. Any contact I had was limited and unrelated to abusive activity (sic)."
He further added, "Some past email exchanges have surfaced that reflect poor judgment in tone. I regret that and understand how they read today, given what was publicly known at the time. My focus remains on supporting accountability, prevention, and efforts that protect and support survivors (sic)."
How did Richa Chadha react?
Calling the author out, Richa Chadha wrote on X (formerly Twitter), "If life makes you a Deepak, be a Mohammad, not Chopra (sic)."
What's behind Richa Chadha's 'be a Mohammad…' reference?
Richa Chadha's comment refers to an incident in Uttarakhand's Kotdwar, where a gym owner named Deepak Kumar stood up against a mob claiming to be from the Bajrang Dal, who were harassing an elderly Muslim shopkeeper. According to news agency PTI, the dispute began when Bajrang Dal workers objected to the name of a shop called 'Baba Dress', owned by Mohammad Shoaib in Kotdwar. They claimed the name could be confused with "Siddhbali Baba", which is a well-known Hanuman temple in the area, and asked Shoaib to change it, police said.
About two and a half months ago, the group pressured Shoaib to rename the shop, but he told them he would do so after moving to a new location. Around 10–15 days ago, Shoaib relocated his shop, but despite the move, protests continued.
On January 28, Bajrang Dal workers gathered outside the shop and clashed with Shoaib and his friend, Deepak Kumar, a local gym owner. During the confrontation, Deepak identified himself as Mohammad Deepak and forced the protestors to leave. After the protests, Kotdwar police registered three different cases on Sunday.
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