Kunal Kamra, India’s stand-up comedy enfant terrible, has once again proven that a well-timed joke can do more than just entertain—it can hurt political egos. His alleged gaddar jibe at Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has triggered outrage, threats, vandalism, and even a demolition drive by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). Apparently, in today’s India, calling someone a traitor in jest is a crime grave enough to summon the police and invite the wrath of the perpetually offended.
Once, leaders could take a joke. Now, even a punch line is treated as an attack. India’s past offers a sharp contrast. Take Jawaharlal Nehru, our first Prime Minister, who famously let cartoonist Shankar lampoon him week after week. “Don’t spare me, Shankar,” he reportedly said, proving that democracy thrives when its leaders can laugh at their own expense.
Compare that to today, where a comedian’s quip leads to police action, threats, and mobs ransacking a comedy club. It’s almost as if our politicians have swapped their sense of humour for a handbook on how to be offended.
This intolerance isn’t unique to India—it’s a global pattern. The tragic 2015 attack on Charlie Hebdo in Paris saw cartoonists and journalists killed for daring to provoke. Art — whether a cartoon or a stand-up set — often doubles as activism, holding a mirror to power. But when power doesn’t like its reflection, it doesn’t just turn away—it destroys the critic. In a democracy, we can’t afford to silence voices that challenge authority. Freedom of expression isn’t a privilege; it’s a constitutional right enshrined in Article 19 of India’s Constitution and protected in democracies worldwide. Comedians like George Carlin thrived in the US by taking on the establishment without fear of retribution.
Of course, there’s a line. If Kamra’s words amount to defamation or offend religious sentiments, the law can take its course — fairly. Summon him, hear him out, let him defend his gag in court if needed. But issuing death threats? Vandalising the Habitat Comedy Club? Demolishing the venue under the flimsy pretext of ‘rule violations’? That’s not justice—that’s intimidation. The Supreme Court recently criticised the misuse of demolitions as a form of punishment in a separate case, calling it a “dangerous precedent.” Clearly, the BMC either didn’t get the message or chose to ignore it.
As mentioned, India is not alone in its crackdown on comedy. In Russia, comedian Alexander Dolgopolov fled the country in 2020 after police investigated his jokes about religion. Closer home, in Indore, Munawar Faruqui spent a month in jail in 2021 over alleged insults he claims he didn’t even deliver.
The message is clear: laugh at your own risk. Just ask Vir Das, whose Two Indias monologue in Washington, D.C., sparked FIRs and national outrage, or Agrima Joshua, who chose to apologise after facing police complaints and threats over a joke about a statue. The pattern is unmistakable — comedy, when it offends the powerful, is treated as a crime.
This culture of intolerance isn’t limited to comedy alone. Writers, filmmakers and even ordinary social media users have faced legal action and threats for expressing opinions that rub the powerful the wrong way. Books have been pulped, films stalled, and individuals harassed simply for questioning authority. The rise of digital surveillance and the ease of filing FIRs over ‘hurt sentiments’ have only worsened the situation. Even a meme can now invite police action, turning everyday citizens into potential offenders for sharing a joke.
Ironically, this hypersensitivity often backfires. The more a joke is suppressed, the more attention it gets. Kamra’s gaddar remark might have been a fleeting punch line, but the overreaction has ensured it remains a national conversation. You can jail a comedian, shut down a club, or bulldoze a venue — but you can’t erase an idea once it has taken root.
So, dear politicians, take a cue from Nehru and learn to take a joke. If criticism unsettles you, perhaps the problem isn’t the comedian — it’s the insecurity that the joke exposes. And as for the BMC, if every place that offends someone is bulldozed, Mumbai might soon run out of real estate.
Let’s keep the laughs alive, the voices loud, and democracy resilient. After all, in a free society, the only thing that should be demolished is intolerance.