YouTuber Arun Panwar faced intense backlash in February, when a video of him accepting ₹71 lakh from his wife’s family at their wedding went viral online. A few days later, he shared a clarification — Panwar appeared in a video alongside his wife where the two explained that he never asked for dowry, and the sum of ₹71 lakh was “daan” (donation), and not “dahej” (dowry).
The YouTube video, although two months old, is going viral now on X, where Anrun Panwar’s explanation has also come under scrutiny.
YouTuber addresses ‘dowry’ claims
Indian YouTuber Arun Panwar has over 2.4 million subscribers on YouTube, and reportedly earns upwards of ₹20 lakh per month through the platform. In February, a video of him receiving ₹71 lakh as cash during his wedding sparked backlash, with critics claiming that he accepted dowry which is illegal in India.
In his clarification video, he pointed out that his wife is a doctor and comes from a family of doctors.
“Despite being a doctor, she chose me, a YouTuber. Can you imagine a YouTuber asking a doctor for dowry?” he asked viewers, calling it absurd.
“Even if I asked for dowry, would you give it?” he asked his wife, who shook her head and said “Nahi (no)”.
‘Not a big amount’
His wife went on to add that Panwar himself was unaware of the amount he would be given during the wedding. “When he sat down for the lagan sagai pooja, it was a kind of surprise for him too,” she said. “And we didn’t expect that this amount [ ₹71 lakh] would be perceived as so big.”
At this point, Pawar interjected to say “Kyunki bhai ye paise wali firm hai” — implying that ₹71 lakh is not a big amount because his wife comes from a rich family.
“Inko lagta hi nahi vo note bada. Logon ko pata nahi kyun lag raha hai (They don’t think it’s a big amount. I don’t understand why people think it’s a big amount),” the YouTuber added.
His wife supported this argument, saying that ₹71 lakh doesn’t sound too big when people spend it on a car. “But ₹71 lakh got associated with the word ‘dowry’, so it became a big issue. In fact, if you buy gold or a car for ₹71 lakh, it won’t sound like a big amount,” she said.
How internet reacted
“Try to get cash more than 10 lakh from a single account and banks are supposed to report to the IT department and here people are flaunting 70 lakh cash as if it’s not a big deal,” wrote one person on X.
“So much education, but doesn’t know that dowry is illegal? It might to a small amount for you guys but what’s illegal is illegal,” another said.
(Also read: Heartbreaking video of Greater Noida dowry victim Nikki Bhati driving Mercedes surfaces after her death)
