KL Rahul relives Koffee with Karan controversy: Was he wrongly blamed?

Team India wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul recently brought up his infamous appearance on the popular television show 'Koffee with Karan' and the repercussions it had on his life and career. The cricketer appeared on the controversial show alongside teammate Hardik Pandya, and the fallout of that particular televised interaction was severe.

Fans and pundits panned the players for their insensitive and sexist remarks, and the duo had to go through a lot before being accepted by the Indian cricketing community again.

Pandya and Rahul were both fined by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). They were also removed from the squads for the tour of New Zealand and had to serve suspension periods before coming back into the team only after the issuance of their apologies. They even lost a couple of sponsorship deals and the incident did hamper their reputation as well.

During a recent interview with Nikhil Kamath, KL Rahul spoke about his appearance on 'Koffee with Karan, admitting that the entire saga 'scarred' him and it was his first fall.

"The interview was a different world. That changed me. Completely changed me. I was a very shy, soft-spoken boy growing up. Then I played for India and became very confident, I had no problem being in a huge group of people. People will know I have been in a room of 100 people because I would talk to everyone," Rahul said.

"Now I don't (do that) because that (KWK) interview scarred me massively," he added. "Getting suspended from the team. I have never been suspended in school, I have never been punished in school. Matlab woh hua hi nahi hai mere saath (All this never happened to me).

"I don't know how to handle it. I did mischievous things in schools like chota mota (small things), but nothing to get me expelled from school or my parents have had to come. That (KWK interview and subsequent backlash) was my first (fall), and then you realise how bad it is."

On that note, let us revisit KL Rahul's comments on Koffee with Karan, five years after its original telecast.

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Hardik Pandya dug the graves while KL Rahul only held the shovel

People wildly and vividly recall Hardik Pandya's statements during the show, in fact even word to word, and not much of what KL Rahul said made the headlines, but does it absolve him of the crime? Now that's a question that can go either way, depending on the person to whom it is being asked.

With the episode being taken down in a flash as controversy sparked almost immediately, there was a lot of confusion regarding what was said by whom, and the WhatsApp forwards and shady meme pages on Instagram were the only sources.

But slowly, with clips being available courtesy of piracy, the picture became clearer. The grey became black and white, but the problem was due to the nature of the comments involved, it still had shades of grey in it.

Some comments made by Rahul regarding partying up until 5 AM ahead of a day match in Miami, and his tryst with cheerleaders, do not portray him or the team management in a good light. On the other hand, it severely pales in comparison to Hardik Pandya's comments and overall attitude and demeanor, but what Rahul said was something worth scrutinizing.

Every person has the right to live the life they envision and wish. Some are flamboyant, some are subdued, and there is nothing wrong with either. The most important thing is that you stay within the line. When you are flirting with the line, you know the risks very well, but spewing those contentious statements out on a public forum, when it is very well known how the typical traditional audience might react, was an unnecessary gambit that backfired.

A tad blown of out proportion, but a tad responsible as well

Stating that KL Rahul was rightly blamed would be a stretch considering his comments were not as diabolical as Pandya's, but his comments were not too ordinary or 'vanilla' for them to be given the blind-eye treatment.

The Indian media and the population in general only need a little to get all riled up, history is evidence of it. It was Pandya who was caught in the eye of the storm, but Rahul, who was placed a few feet across the sofa during the interview was inevitably caught in it as well.

There are some claims that state that Rahul was wrong to do the things he claimed he did on the show, or that he was supposed to stop Pandya from making all those controversial comments or at least reacting to it on air. There is not much case for either of those statements, especially the latter.

The bottom line is KL Rahul has a great record overall, he is hardly ever involved in controversies and there are no minor blips before and after the 'Koffee with Karan' incident. His comments albeit dodgy, were not war crimes, but it was treated like that on social media and elsewhere.

On the flip side, Rahul, knowing the potential consequences, should also have been watchful of what he said. In the end, he was right to be blamed for what he said, because only he is responsible for it, but he was blamed way too much for it. The punishment did not fit the crime.