Miss Rishikesh audition disrupted by Hindutva group, participant stands firm

An audition for the Miss Rishikesh fashion show in Uttarakhand was disrupted when members of a Hindutva group stormed the venue, calling the event “against their culture.”

The incident took place at a hotel and quickly escalated into a heated argument, a video of which has since gone viral.

According to reports, members of the Hindu Raksha Sangathan entered the room and ordered the auditions to stop. Its president, Raghavendra, told the participants to leave immediately, accusing them of “spoiling the environment” by wearing western clothes.

One of the participants boldly confronted him, saying they had no authority to stop her from working. When she questioned why they did not shut down cigarettes and liquor shops in the town, Raghavendra replied, “You don’t tell me what to do.” She fired back, “Then you also don’t tell us what to do. Let us do our work. I am sorry.”

The confrontation escalated when the worker accused the participants of being responsible for women eloping from their homes in Uttarakhand. The young woman firmly responded, “You are no one telling this. Who are you?”

Organisers attempted to reason with the Hindutva members, stressing that the women were not forced to participate and that their parents had no objections. However, the group refused to listen and remained adamant.

The video of the incident has drawn widespread attention online, with many praising the girl’s courage in standing up to moral policing.

“Moral policing has become a new norm in India. Miss India could have been banned from the court if he had any problems with such events, and Miss Rishikesh would have been banned automatically as well,” one X user wrote.

Another commented, “brave girls, we need more of such youngsters to shut these idiots up.”

Some criticised the hypocrisy of the protesters.

“If you were protesting while wearing a dhoti-kurta and khadau, it would make sense that you’re trying to save the culture. Pant-shirt is not our culture, nor are sport shoes; it’s just like how Modi ji speaks into a foreign mic saying ‘adopt swadeshi.’ Like guru, like disciple, asking for mangoes but showing pebbles,” said one user.

Another pointed out, “These Hindutva contractors manage to get through even when everyone says that everyone is doing as they please, so I don’t know what their problem is. Foreign tourists are just there, but their rules don’t apply to them.”

Criticism also turned to governance issues.

“Give them some proper work. The roads are in bad shape, the state of education is terrible, there’s domestic violence, rape, corruption, cleanliness issues, etc. Are there no other issues? These days, anyone is talking nonsense in the name of this party. And this government won’t say anything because these are the very people who bring them votes,” another X user wrote.