‘Can I go & vandalise…’: Vir Das, Varun Grover to Raunaq Rajani, comedians react to Shiv Sena vs Kunal Kamra row

Kunal Kamra

Kunal Kamra is currently at the centre of controversy due to his recent act. The comedian has found himself in hot water over his alleged defamatory remarks against Maharashtra Deputy CM Eknath Shinde. Now, with Kamra facing heavy criticism, The Habitat, the venue where Kunal performed, being vandalised by Shiv Sena workers, and FIRs against him, several members of his fraternity have come out in support of him and called out the system.

Stand-Up comedians react to backlash on Kunal Kamra's recent act

Famous stand-up comedian Vir Das took to his Instagram and shared a long post, trying to put focus on a rather smaller picture and the effects of the venue shutting down. He wrote, "While everyone has a larger discussion as they should, I'd like to direct your attention to a smaller picture. Last month, this week, and for the indefinite future at the Habitat, an artistic venue in Mumbai. You will find people without work. These include waiters, cooks, sound engineers, light engineers, kitchen staff, front-of-house staff, writers, poets, new comedians in multiple languages, professional comedians in multiple languages, improv artists, theatre plays, video editors, filmmakers, and storytellers. I would say 90% of them moved to Mumbai from a different city to feed their family and/or express their art. Plays that took years to be written, comedians who waited years for a spot or a solo show, along with many workers who need a daily wage. Good, hardworking, innocent people. For a second, I'd like you to imagine that happening to more than one venue, and then to all of them. And what that does to your city."

Raunaq Rajani also took to his Instagram, and his first two stories were about condemning the acts of the Shiv Sena workers. His third story was for Kunal Kamra. "Who said India is not a free country? Only in a free country can you just walk into a premises that is not yours and start breaking shit," he wrote in his first story. While lending his support to Kamra, Rajani added, "It's called the Streisand effect. Every time they try to silence someone, they just give them more eyeballs. They know this, yet they keep doing it. They're only pumping up the volume on their critics. If whatever Kamra said is untrue, then why did it bother them so much?"

Varun Grover, who is known for his bold opinions, took to his X account and re-shared the clip of Shiv Sena workers vandalising the venue. He wrote, "Skill India. Make in India. Ease of doing business. Mother of Democracy."

Rahul Subramanian took to his social media and took a dig at all those who forcefully entered The Habitat. He questioned the tolerance of politicians and whether they are even open to criticism. He wrote, "If you want to see how tolerant and 'open to criticism' our politicians are, just say only good and positive things about them...If you criticise or question them, what choice do you leave these noble statesmen with?"

He further continued and shared, "Also, just wanted to know, if I don't like what a politician says about something or someone I respect, can I go and vandalise their office or the place where they made the speech while still continuing to be a 'law-abiding' citizen?
Asking for a friend."