Children Rescued After Dramatic Hostage Situation At Mumbai Studio; Man Arrested

A tense hostage situation unfolded in Mumbai’s Powai area on Thursday after a man held 17 children and two adults captive at a studio, triggering a massive police operation. The children were all rescued safely after police stormed the premises, and the suspect, identified as an employee of the studio, was arrested.The drama began at RA Studio, an acting school, when a man identified as Rohit Arya, who had been conducting auditions, confined a group of children inside. According to initial reports, around 100 children had arrived for auditions, and while most were allowed to leave, Arya held back about 15 to 20 of them.

Witnesses reported seeing children peeking out from the studio’s glass windows as worried parents gathered outside.The police response was swift. After cordoning off the area, officers forced entry into the studio through a bathroom and managed to rescue all the hostages. Deputy Commissioner of Police Datta Nalawade confirmed that the suspect was alone and that police recovered air guns and chemicals from the scene.

All the rescued children have since been safely handed over to their guardians.In a chilling video message released during the standoff, Arya claimed he had taken the children hostage as “part of a plan” to force conversations with certain people.

He insisted his demands were “moral” and “ethical,” not financial, and warned authorities not to “trigger” him. “A slightest wrong move from your end will trigger me to set this entire place on fire and die in it,” he said in the video, adding that he did not see himself as a terrorist but as a “normal common person” who just wanted to talk. Police are now interrogating Arya to determine the exact motive behind the shocking incident.