The Payal Gaming viral clip controversy says everything wrong about today’s internet

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Story Highlights

  • A casual “share the link” comment revealed how easily curiosity turns into cruelty online.
  • Despite Payal publicly denying the video, the sharing and speculation continued.
  • Cheap internet access have normalised believing and spreading content without pause.

I woke up late and quickly scrolled past a post about a popular Indian gamer on X, figuring it was just another stream highlight. I thought, “Oh, probably just something they did today,” and went back to what I was doing. But when I checked X again later, I realized those comments were about something way bigger than a simple stream clip. It turned out to be a much different situation than I’d first assumed.

These days, it’s incredibly easy and fast to share information, and it spreads almost immediately. That speed and accessibility are what’s concerning. Affordable internet, powerful smartphones, and constant scrolling contribute to this.

At some point, life became so hectic that we stopped questioning things. This is where things started to go wrong. We now tend to accept information without thinking critically, taking it as truth without pausing to consider its validity. Simply having access to information is often enough, even without truly believing it.

That’s why what recently happened with Payal Dhare, known as Payal Gaming, shook me to the core.

Fake MMS claims falsely linked to Payal Gaming spread rapidly across platforms

As someone who keeps up with the Indian mobile gaming scene, I couldn’t believe what started happening. A private video began circulating, and people immediately started tagging Payal with it. It spread so quickly – tons of posts, shares, and the usual requests for a link to see it. Honestly, it escalated to something really awful within just a few hours. It was just shocking to see.

Payal finally addressed the video and stated definitively that she was not the woman shown in it. She emphasized that the video had no connection to her personal life, decisions, or who she is. She also announced that she was taking legal steps to address the situation and politely requested that people stop sharing the video.

But by then, it almost didn’t matter, because the internet had already decided what it wanted.

Honestly, at this point, it doesn’t even matter to me if the video was created with AI or altered in some way. That discussion is pointless. What’s truly disturbing is how quickly people kept asking for a link to the video, even after the person in it asked them to stop. It’s really awful.

Somewhere along the way, we started forgetting that people online are, well, people. We reduced them to names we search for, faces we consume as content, and rumors we enjoy as entertainment. And unfortunately, the desire to see others struggle isn’t new – it’s been happening for a long time.

Shameful behaviour, when excused as “just the internet” is even more disgraceful

What’s most frustrating is how easily people dismiss these issues, calling it “just the internet.” They don’t seem to care until it happens to them or someone they know. Only then do they start to think about privacy and respect, and even then, it depends on how much they care.

Payal Gaming experienced a harsh reality. Despite repeatedly stating she didn’t want it and asking people to stop, the harassment continued. It’s deeply upsetting to consider how much negativity she had to face.

Because this happened to someone well-known, many people are speaking out against it, including other public figures who are expressing their disappointment. It’s a good reminder that many kind people still exist. However, these kinds of things also happen to private individuals – and we should remember how much they must be hurting, too.

I’m not sure if anyone will even see this, or if those who do will pause to consider what they’re asking for the next time they request a link online. It’s possible people would have already understood this if they were going to.

It still feels necessary to say this. I hope that amidst everything, at least a few people will stop and think. I hope they feel a pang of guilt – the kind that makes you consider your actions. The kind that prompts you to ask yourself, “How would I feel if this happened to someone I cared about? Or if it happened to me?”

At the very least, I hope we learn to be quieter, kinder, and more human.

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2025-12-19 16:42