Renu Desai Clarifies: I Was Not Shouting at the Media, a Man Tried to Hit Me

Renu Desai held a press conference at the Hyderabad Press Club on Monday, joined by anchor Rashmi Gautam and director Sashi Kiran Tikka. While the event was intended to raise awareness about street dog bites, the atmosphere turned sour when Renu lost her cool during a heated argument with an individual who reportedly tried to charge at her.

After videos of the incident went viral, Renu posted a clarification video on Instagram.

During the conference, she drew a comparison regarding public concern over dog attacks, stating: "Lakhs of people die from mosquito bites; do their lives not hold value? A child I know died of dengue. Is a life lost to a dog bite the only one that matters? I am speaking to the dog haters here—why are you being so selective?"

She continued, "You don’t care about human lives; you just hate dogs. Children are raped and murdered every day—where is your humanity then? People die because they don't wear helmets, yet who protests that?" Renu also questioned if all men should be held accountable for the crimes of a few, asking: "Are we murdering all men because a few rape and kill? So, why would you want to kill all dogs?"

Addressing the altercation specifically, she shouted, "Ask that man how many lives he has saved. How many children has this man saved? Tell him not to open his mouth here."

In her follow-up video, Renu clarified that she is not entering politics and denied screaming at the media. "I didn’t scream at the press; wrong thumbnails are being created," she said. "A random 55-year-old man walked into the conference and started shouting at me. He tried to come onto the stage to hit me, and security had to hold him back. That is why I got angry."