A glimpse into the Charlie Puth – Sadhguru controversy

On 4th November this year, Charlie Puth an American singer songwriter who makes pop music met with Sadhguru, a renowned spiritual guru of Indian origin. The singer, best known for his song ‘See You Again’ which was featured in ‘Furious 7’, shared a snapshot from the meeting via an Instagram post captioned ‘thank you @sadhguru’. Charlie’s post received a mixed reaction from netizens. Many fans expressed excitement that the singer might be in India and release a collaboration with Sadhguru. Whereas, some argued that the spiritual guru is a fraud who runs a ‘cult’, referring to his Isha Foundation. In recent years, Sadhguru has received acclaim and recognition for his work around the globe. But some believe that he is allegedly a member of the RSS [Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh], a right-wing organization that is frequently associated with the current ruling party, BJP [Bhartiya Jana Party]. This isn’t the first time, someone from the American entertainment industry showed appreciation for Sadhguru. In the past, the Isha Foundation has also met actor Will Smith. While Demi Lovato, Matthew McConaughey and Rainn Wilson have participated in discussions with him. Each time, there were varying degrees of backlash. And in most cases, the backlash is from Indians themselves. Contrary to what people on social media believe, Sadhguru is not affiliated to any political party or organization. And the issues championed by him are almost always related to some sort of social work or charity. This whole scandal poses another interesting question. Would the reception be same if Charlie Puth or Will Smith met with a guru from the other side of political spectrum?