{
  "id": 15538638,
  "title": "‘Mumbai comedy mafia’: Abhishek Upmanyu and Urooj Ashfaq accused of stealing jokes, personal information",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/19/mumbai-comedy-mafia-abhishek-upmanyu-and-urooj-ashfaq-accused-of",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-10-19T01:53:51.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Live Mint",
    "slug": "live-mint",
    "url": "https://www.livemint.com/news/trends/mumbai-comedy-mafia-abhishek-upmanyu-and-urooj-ashfaq-accused-of-stealing-jokes-stealing-personal-information-11792374510953.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Comedian Neetu Bhardwaj has accused fellow comedians Abhishek Upmanyu and Urooj Ashfaq, as well as others, of following her and her family, hacking their phones and social media accounts, and stealing their personal information. In her Instagram post, Neetu claimed she felt unsafe while going about everyday activities, such as grocery shopping and walking in parks, and described the perpetrators as the \"Mumbai comedy mafia\". She also suggested that those involved should steal openly rather than attempting to pass themselves off as comedians. Neetu further alleged that her original comedy material had been copied and that people she perceived as lacking talent were receiving applause.",
  "summary": "Comedian Neetu Bhardwaj alleged on Instagram that fellow comedians Abhishek Upmanyu, Urooj Ashfaq and others were following her and her family, hacking their phones and sharing private information.",
  "key_points": [
    "Comedians allegedly followed and hacked Bhardwaj's phone and social media accounts.",
    "Bhardwaj described perpetrators as the \"Mumbai comedy mafia\" and suggested open theft."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}