An Indian vlogger has come under fire for her behaviour in China. YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra, who has over two lakh subscribers on the platform, has angered the internet with a series of videos she posted during her journey to the country. Many people have called her “rude”, “mannerless” and “disrespectful” to the laws and cultures of the country.
She posted a clip last month of her journey from Shanghai to Beijing in a high-speed train. However, when she boarded the train, she discovered that she had a middle seat. Ms Malhotra then approached a fellow traveller and persuaded him to give up his window seat. Later, the vlogger also attempted to negotiate with a woman for a ride on her two-wheeler across the junction, even though the person informed her that she was travelling in the opposite direction. The woman eventually stopped to ask a police officer to assist her in comprehending what the YouTuber, who was speaking in Hindi, was trying to communicate all along after travelling a certain distance against her will.
The footage additionally showed Ms Malhotra boarding a bus, proceeding directly to her seat, and rejecting the driver’s request to purchase a ticket. She also tried to get down at a traffic stop, arguing and pointing to her destination, only to be told that the bus only stops at specific locations.
The YouTuber made fun of people’s height and the price of their “cheap” cell phones, spoke insensitively to the residents of the area and spoke in Hindi or English that nobody could understand at various points in her videos. She also took issue with the locals’ exclusive use of Chinese for communication.
A video compiling all of these incidents was shared on X (formerly Twitter) and has amassed over 1.6 million views on the platform. “Ask for a window seat in a commanding tone. Forcibly boarded old lady’s scooter without consent & asked her to travel in opposite direction. Forcibly stoped a moving bus, took bus without coin (twice),& ask driver to stop at a non-station place,” read the caption of the post.
“The way she kept saying ‘chini bhai chini bhai’ (Chinese brother). Vloggers like her are a disgrace to India who keep spoiling our nation’s reputation everywhere. Her voice is so shrill it makes me want to smack her,” said a user.
Another said, “Ban this person from travelling anywhere but the bloody street she lives on.”
A third wrote, “This is so annoying! The arrogance. She’s not even respecting them. And is she talking in Hindi? So typical! She’s lucky that they are being courteous.”
“Getting second hand embarrassment watching this!” commented a user.
“It’s not just about her attitude in foreign country, I bet she doesn’t even respect the cultural differences in her own country. She needs to be humbled,” added a person.
The YouTuber, in the comments section of the video titled “Bullet Train of China 350 KMPH Bullet Train journey” issued an statement and said, “Thank you for your feedback. I’ve travelled to several Asian countries and have always had positive experiences. I believe the recent misunderstanding was due to language barrier and miscommunication. I didn’t mean to hurt anyone’s sentiments, and I will take care in the future. We keep a harmonious relationship as neighbours and appreciate your understanding. I’m committed to improve our communication in future videos.”
