Drama, Allegations and Broken Friendships - Ronak and Thug Go At Each Other On YouTube

Some of the top professionals in the Indian PUBG Mobile scene were involved in a bitter fight on YouTube last night, throwing a tirade of accusations at each other. At the center of the controversy was Fnatic’s Ronak, whose split with his old team SouL was the major discussion point along the entire argument. While he was the only one presenting the case from his side, members from S8UL, including Goldy, Thug, Viper and Mamba were on the other side of the argument. 

The old SouL lineup and it's eventual split was a major talking point between Ronak and Thug | Image via @Ronak

A visibly emotional Ronak started off his stream in tears as he looked to clear the air between him and the community following increased scrutiny on the player in recent weeks. With another fire brewing between the Fnatic players and Sc0utOP, Ronak has been the subject of hate as fans accused him of taking Scout’s spot on the team and not being able to perform. While Fnatic has maintained that it has been a team decision, a fact reiterated by both management and coach, it seems as if the fans chose to take their anger out on Ronak for the most part. The player, known to be emotional, broke down saying that the increased pressure, hate and misinformation about him has put a toll on his mental health and worsened his ability to perform in game.   

[Also read: Sc0utOP Expresses Frustration Over Being Benched]

The center point of the discussion was the fact that he was upset about how his departure from SouL was handled and he felt that Animesh ‘Thug’ Agarwal had turned his friends against him. He also brought forth allegations that Thug’s handling of SouL as one of the owners in the early days was shady and blamed him for breaking up the original SouL roster. Eventually the stream went to him joining a call with an animated and agitated Thug and other members of S8UL, who put forth their own sides of the argument. 

At this point the entire discussion turned into a major hotchpotch of he said, she said. Various topics ranging from Thug’s handling to SouL, to Ronak and Owais’s eventual departure and how Thug had allegedly asked members of S8UL to not have Owais and Ronak on their streams due to bad blood. While it’s impossible to determine the degree of truth behind many of the allegations, accusations and finger pointing that happened between both parties, it was evident that the charged up affair never should have happened on a public stream. 

While Ronak accused Thug and other members of playing politics and stoking fires behind the scenes, they fired back saying that it was his decision to leave SouL that sparked many of the problems that were coming to light. The call would last for nearly an hour and much like a prime time debate on a news channel, was inconclusive and largely about getting a point across than listening and being open to another person’s viewpoint. 

Thug, Goldy, Mamba and Viper all had points to make with regards to Ronak's accusations

The stream was a good reminder of the pressures of public life and  there were a lot of takeaways about how not to behave as a professional player and as a professional team owner. The entire stream was massively charged up, raw and emotional with the involved parties ready to lay it all on the line. Amidst the chaos, two voices of reason stood out with their maturity and dignified responses. One was Tanmay ‘Sc0utOP’ Singh, who cleared the air between himself and Ronak. The second was Salman ‘8bit.Mamba’ Ahmad who reiterated that there is no point in airing their dirty laundry as it would do no good. 

There is little doubt that this incident is yet another example of how fame and money changes dynamics and how the fine line of friendship, professionalism and business is a hard one to tread. Earlier in the morning, 8bit.Thug came live on his channel once again to explain his side of things, however it seems as if the damage has been done to both sides. Hopefully the discussion and the incident gives closure to both parties and their fans as there is little that can be achieved by dwelling on the past. For now let’s focus on the positives and come together as a community as we unite to raise money for those affected by the COVID-19 in the #Game4Good Initiative. 

[Also read: Fnatic and Loco Announce Charity Tournament to Raise Funds for Those Affected By COVID-19]