Legendary Qawwali singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan landed in trouble after his short video clip took the internet by storm in which he can be seen thrashing a man whom he called his student Naveed Husnain.

In the clip that wreaked havoc on social media, the internationally acclaimed singer subjected the man to brutal physical torture and kept asking about a missing “bottle”.

The gravity of the incident was apparent from the video as Rahat was seen beating the man with slaps, kicks and even his shoes, while the ‘victim’ pleaded with him to stop. Some other men were also seen in some clips from the video, intervening to separate Rahat from the ‘victim’.

The highly graphic video made rounds on social media and #RahatFatehAliKhan became a top trend on microblogging site X in Pakistan.

The video sent shockwaves through the music industry and on social media as the netizens questioned Rahat’s conduct and raised concerns about ‘substance’ abuse.

Taking the seriousness of the matter into account, Rahat responded to the controversy and issued a clarification that the matter was not the same in reality as apparent in the video.

“The video is an internal matter of a teacher and a student. We do love a student over a good deed, as well as punish him if he commits a mistake,” the singer said in a video statement issued via his official Instagram account.

“I forgot a bottle of water which was given by my pir (spiritual healer). I also apologised to my student at the same time,” he said referring to the “student” as Naveed Husnain.

Meanwhile, the “student” said that the “bottle” mentioned in the viral video contained the water the spiritual leader gave, which he had misplaced.

“He is [like] my father, my teacher. God knows how much he loves us. Whoever has done this, is simply blackmailing my teacher to defame him,” he added.

In a separate video, Husnain said that Rahat had apologised to him for whatever happened between them due to which, he was now “embarrassed”. He further stated that Rahat is his teacher and “can do whatever he wants” with him.

The artist, the nephew of Qawwali king Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, shared multiple videos on Instagram containing similar clarifications about the matter.