Jinder Mahal was emerging to become a top WWE superstar after becoming the first person of Indian descend to win the WWE Championship in 2017. However, he could not live up to the expectations of the management and was eventually released from the company in April 2024. But during his time in the company, Mahal had to deliver a promo that he was opposed to but had to do it due to the orders of his then-boss, Vince McMahon.
During a recent interview on Insight with Chris Van Vliet, Jinder Mahal spoke about a promo he delivered to Shinsuke Nakamura in 2017. He stated that he, much all-Asian people looked the same, but did not want to say it citing it as a racial promo.
Which promo did Jinder Mahal did not want to deliver, but had to due to orders by Vince McMahon?
The promo came directly from then-WWE Chairman Vince McMahon, who insisted he follow it despite the anticipated negative backlash. He expressed his concerns to Vince but was told not to worry as it was just a character portrayal.
“There was one promo in particular and recently, I actually just seen Shelton Benjamin tweet that if he could take back one thing in his career, it was a promo with Yoshitatsu. Same thing, kind of like a racial promo. So that day, I had the promo, I got the script from the writer, ‘This is from Vince. He wants you to say this.’ I was like, ‘Aw man, I don’t want to say this. Is there anything else we can do?’ He said, ‘No, it’s come from Vince.’
As Mahal anticipated, the promo received immediate negative feedback. Mahal was informed of this and asked to tweet a prepared statement. However, Vince McMahon later decided against releasing the statement.
He reflected on this experience with regret but acknowledged that WWE’s approach has evolved since then. Mahal noted that the current regime under Triple H operates differently, and such promos are unlikely to happen again.
