Nigerian social media personality and actress Abike Raheem, popularly known as Papaya Ex, is responding angrily to X users questioning the circumstances surrounding the disappearance of her YouTube movie, The Spotlight.
Papaya Ex previously alleges that her YouTube manager deletes the movie from her channel after it records 2.7 million views and more than 10,000 comments.
The disappearance of the film triggers a wave of reactions on X, with some users questioning whether the incident is genuine.
Some social media users also suggest that the controversy could be a publicity strategy designed to generate additional attention for the movie.
One X user, Gidi, questions the situation and suggests that the incident could form part of a promotional strategy for the film.
“Why is everything always happening to her??? This might be another content to help promote this same movie!” the user writes.
Papaya Ex responds angrily, arguing that the alleged deletion cannot reasonably serve as a promotional strategy because she says the movie cannot simply be uploaded again on the same channel.
She says the removal of the movie creates a serious problem for her rather than an opportunity to promote it.
“How can a painful situation be used to promote a movie that had been deleted and can’t be re-uploaded on the same channel because your channel will be taken down,” she says.
She also insults the user in her response, expressing anger over what she considers an insensitive reaction to the situation.
Another X user, Roseline Chuku, questions the authenticity of Papaya Ex’s account of what happens to the movie. “So this Papaya Ex story about her manager deleting her movie is actually false?” the user asks.
The user compares Papaya Ex with another social media personality and says she initially feels sympathy for the actress before questioning the account.
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Papaya Ex responds by strongly rejecting the suggestion that the incident is fabricated. “False how?” she asks, before issuing a warning against people attempting to use her situation to gain attention online.
She also invokes a prayer against anyone she believes is trying to exploit the controversy for clout, while adding a qualification that the prayer applies only if she is lying about what happened.
The controversy continues when another X user, Oriaku Worldwide, proposes a different explanation for the disappearance of the movie.
The user suggests that Papaya Ex may already have received financial benefits from the film’s 2.7 million views and could potentially re-upload the movie elsewhere to generate additional revenue.
According to the user, the alleged strategy could involve uploading the film again and encouraging viewers to watch it a second time. The user describes the hypothetical approach as “dubious but smart work.”
Papaya Ex again reacts angrily, wishing the user “everlasting sadness” and accusing the person of attempting to gain clout from her situation. The exchange remains visible on Papaya Ex’s X account.
The online dispute follows an emotional video in which Papaya Ex breaks down while discussing the disappearance of The Spotlight.
She says she invests significant time and effort into the project and reveals that she fasts for 30 days while working on the movie.
Her emotional reaction further draws public attention to the incident, with social media users debating the circumstances surrounding the film’s disappearance.
While some users express sympathy and defend the actress, others continue to question whether the deletion occurs exactly as she describes.
The Spotlight is released on August 14 and features Papaya Ex alongside Michael Dappa and Ada Uli. The film follows Dayo, a struggling music artiste who seeks to break through in the competitive music industry.
The disappearance of the movie from YouTube therefore affects not only its availability to viewers but also the online momentum generated after its release.
Papaya Ex says the film had already attracted millions of views before disappearing from her channel, making the reported loss particularly significant.
The controversy continues to generate debate across X, with reactions divided between users who support Papaya Ex and those who remain sceptical about the circumstances surrounding the alleged deletion.
While Papaya Ex maintains that the incident is genuine and rejects suggestions of a publicity stunt, questions about how the movie disappears from her channel remain central to the online discussion.
The actress continues to defend her account of events while criticising users she believes are exploiting the situation for online attention.
NAN
