Indian stand-up comedians who courted controversy: Kunal Kamra, Vir Das and others

New Delhi: Comedian Kunal Kamra triggered a major controversy after his remarks calling Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde 'traitor'. Upset over his remark, Shiv Sena workers vandalised the Habitat Comedy Club, the place where the comedy show was recorded. However, apart from multiple Mumbai Police notices to Kamra, it also became a joke on social media for the lack of understanding of Shiv Sena workers. Now, he has triggered the controversy again after he reacted to Samay Raina hanging out with Shiv Sena’s Rahool Kanal and the owner of the Habitat, Balraj Singh. 

Before Kunal Kamra, comedian Samay Raina, podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia, and others who appeared on India's Got Latent faced backlash over their "vulgar" and "inappropriate" remarks on the roast show, India's Got Latent. Kunal Kamra's dig at politics in Maharashtra also triggered a debate on social media about the 'freedom of speech' in India. However, comedians have often been targetted in the country over their satire on religion and politics. Let's look at some Indian comedians who have landed in soup due to their comedy.

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Vir Das, a globally recognised comedian, landed in a major controversy with FIRs registered against him following his monologue, 'I Come From Two Indias' at the Washington DC Kennedy Centre in 2021. In a six-minute piece, he said, "I come from an India where we worship women during the day and gang-rape them during the night."

A popular stand-up comedian, Munawar Faruqui, was arrested in Indore on January 2021 over his remarks on Hindu deities and home minister Amit Shah. What made the row more controversial was that police admitted there was no video proof of his offensive remark and he was arrested based on a complaint that he "intended" to make such jokes.

Tanmay Bhat, one of the founding members of AIB, faced backlash several times for allegedly being "vulgar" and "obscene". He faced FIRs in 2016 due to a Snapchat face swap video featuring Lata Mangeshkar and Sachin Tendulkar, which was meant as a lighthearted joke. Following the video, Shiv Sena, BJP and MNS demanded action against him and the group for mocking them.

In 2016, popular actor and comedian Kiku Sharda was arrested for mimicking Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim for 'hurting religious sentiments'. However, Gurmeet Ram Rahim was later sent to prison for 20 years in connection with a rape case.

Kapil Sharma has also courted controversy due to his "inappropriate" remarks. In 2016, he was criticised for making sexist jokes about women in government offices.

In 2020, Agrima Joshua found herself embroiled in a controversy over an old stand-up clip where he made a joke about the proposed Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue in Maharashtra. The video triggered a massive outrage from certain political groups, who claimed she disrespected the Maratha warrior king. She later issued a public apology.

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Though she did not face any legal actions, one of the few female stand-up comedians in India, Neeti Palta, was criticised over her jokes on gender roles and religious customs. Some even labelled her as "anti-Hindu", which led to calls for boycotts.