Classical vocalist, composer and music producer Ramesh Narayan faced intense criticism from netizens on Tuesday for allegedly disrespecting Malayalam film actor Asif Ali while accepting an award from him at a recent function in Kochi.

A video has gone viral on social media of of the incident, which took place on July 15 during the trailer release of an anthology based on nine stories written by the eminent writer M T Vasudevan Nair.

The video shows Ali coming on to the stage to present the award, but Narayan appeared uninterested and accepted the award without acknowledging him.

Then he called Film Director Jayaraj to the stage and handed him the award, which Jayaraj later returned to Narayan after photos were clicked.

Youth Congress State President Rahul Mamkootathil criticised Narayan, saying, "A young man who has been standing firm for about a year-and-a-half through hard work and dedication will not be eliminated by trying to remove him through 'seniority complex'." Facing severe criticism, Narayan denied that he intentionally tried to humiliate Ali.

"If it seemed that way, I apologise," he told reporters.

"I didn't even know Asif Ali was presenting the award. Many film stars were standing there when Ali suddenly appeared and gave me the award. I wanted Jayaraj to be there, so I called him on stage. Meanwhile, Ali disappeared. If Asif Ali had been there too, the three of us could have shared a loving moment," he said.

Narayan also called Ali a dear friend and said he was a big fan of his acting.

"I was about to call him. If I made a mistake, I apologise," Narayan said.

Ali has not reacted to the controversy.

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