Comedian Kunal Kamra’s jokes about former Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde spark controversy, debating the limits of free speech for comedians in India. Some argue that politicians should ignore offensive jokes, while others believe that there should be limit on jokes which provokes the political and public figures. The incident has led to an FIR and vandalised the hotel in Mumbai by eknath shinde supports, prompting a broader conversation on the boundaries of humor in politics, the reaction of those in power, and the potential consequences for comedians. In response of vandalism and threats, Kunal Kamra has refused to apologise after jokes he made during a stand-up show angered supporters of a top politician in Maharashtra state. Meanwhiles clips of the jokes on state’s Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde had gone viral on social media.
Kamra is a well-known name in the Indian comedy scene, with his political satire and stand-up shows getting millions of views on social media. In his latest show – called Naya Bharat (New India) – Kamra refers to Shinde’s 2022 defection from the Shiv Sena party which triggered a major political crisis in the state. In the show, Kamra sang a parody of a Bollywood song where he indirectly referred to Shinde as a traitor, outraging his supporters.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, criticised Kamra, asking him to apologise. “None of us are against freedom of speech. We support satire or even political satire and we do not paint it differently,” he said. Both he and Shinde accused Kamra of speaking on behalf of the opposition. Opposition leaders have supported Kamra. Uddhav Thackeray, chief of Shinde’s former party – the Shiv Sena (UBT) – said Kamra had not done anything wrong. “He stated the facts and voiced the public opinion,” he added.
Indian comedians have often faced legal action over comments and jokes now days. In 2021, Munawar Faruqui spent days in jail after being accused of hurting Hindu religious sentiments in jokes that – it turned out – he didn’t actually crack. Actor and comedian Vir Das also faced outrage and police complaints after a show in the US where he described India as a country of two sides where people “worship women during the day but gang rape them at night”.
