In an Indian city, an unassuming, slightly rumpled comedian walks into the spotlight for the first time in months.
Tousle-haired and clad in a checked shirt, Samay Raina half smiles on stage, as if a punchline is already poised at the edge of his lips. The audience laughs even before he begins speaking.
Until a year ago, Raina was at the top of India's burgeoning comedy scene, with millions of views online and sold-out shows across India and the world. His flagship YouTube show, India's Got Latent - a ragged, exuberant parody of talent competitions - had become an online phenomenon, blending absurd humour with sharp improvisation to capture the sensibilities of a generation raised on streaming culture.
Then, a joke uttered by someone else on the show brought everything crashing down.
Trouble began after one of the guests, podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia - who is better known as BeerBiceps to his millions of followers - asked a contestant an explicit and widely criticised question.
