Mumbai Studio Hostage :Mumbai Police recovered Air gun, petrol, lighter from studio where children were held hostage

Mumbai : The clock seemed to have stopped ticking. It was a nerve-racking three hours — anxiety and fear gripped everyone as the fate of 17 kidnapped children in the heart of Mumbai’s commercial hub hung in the balance. Finally, a successful operation brought relief: police rescued all 17 children who had been held captive, and the kidnapper was killed. The incident shook Mumbai on Thursday afternoon.

The terrifying sequence unfolded at RA Studio, where the children and an elderly man had gone to attend a film audition. Several others were also found locked up. Shockingly, it was all the doing of a single man — 38-year-old Rohit Arya, who had taken everyone hostage inside a hall equipped with motion sensors.

He repeatedly threatened to set the place on fire. After an intense 35-minute operation, the police rescued all the hostages, including the children. The kidnapper, Rohit Arya, was shot dead during the encounter.

Here’s how the incident unfolded, according to the police:

12:00 p.m. – Rohit, a familiar face at the studio, arrived at RA Studio.
12:30 p.m. – Seventeen children arrived for their audition.
1:00 p.m. – Rohit locked the audition hall from inside, trapping everyone inside.

Panic spread quickly — the children screamed for help and banged on the windows.

1:30 p.m. – After receiving calls from panicked parents and bystanders, the police rushed to the scene. Negotiations began to secure the hostages’ release.

For nearly two hours, police tried to calm Rohit, listening to his demands and promising cooperation. Although his exact demands remain unclear, officers said he was becoming increasingly unstable, threatening to burn the captives alive.

3:30 p.m. – Despite continuous efforts, Rohit refused to release the hostages. Police called in the fire brigade.
3:45 p.m. – Fire personnel arrived, and police entered the building through a small bathroom window, the only entry point without motion sensors.
3:50 p.m. – An eight-member Quick Reaction Team of commandos launched the rescue operation.

4:00 p.m. – Seeing the commandos, Rohit opened fire. Mistaking his weapon for a real gun, the commandos returned fire. One bullet hit Rohit in the chest.
4:10 p.m. – Rohit was rushed to the hospital, where doctors declared him dead shortly afterward.
4:30 p.m. – All 17 children and two other hostages (19 total) were safely evacuated from the studio.

According to police, when the commandos entered, they found the children sitting in a corner of the hall, surrounded by overturned cameras and lighting equipment. The weapon Rohit was using turned out to be an air gun. He also had chemicals and lighters, using them to threaten to burn the children alive. To block police entry, he had installed motion sensors on every door and window — except the bathroom window, which became the commandos’ entry route.

CCTV cameras had been repositioned to avoid detection. Police revealed that Rohit had worked at the studio for a long time, so everyone knew him. He also ran his own YouTube channel, where he reportedly uploaded content related to filmmaking.