Comedian Kunal Kamra condemned the demolition of a studio in Mumbai where supporters of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde barged in and protested against his jokes on Mr Shinde.
Mr Kamra in a post on X said an entertainment venue is merely a platform and has no power or control over what he says or does, so attacking a venue is “senseless”.
“An entertainment venue is merely a platform. A space for all sorts of shows. Habitat (or any other venue) is not responsible for my comedy, nor does it have any power or control over what I say or do. Neither does any political party. Attacking a venue for a comedian’s words is as senseless as overturning a lorry carrying tomatoes, because you didn’t like the butter chicken you were served,” Mr Kamra said.
Referring to what he called “political leaders threatening to teach” him a lesson, Mr Kamra said the right to freedom of speech and expression is “not only to be used to fawn over the powerful and rich even though today’s media would have us believe otherwise”.
“Your inability to take a joke at the expense of a powerful public figure does not change the nature of my right. As far as I know, it is not against the law to poke fun at our leaders and the circus that is our political system,” the comedian said.
He said he is willing to cooperate with the police and courts for any lawful action taken against him. However, he raised a question, “… Will the law be fairly and equally deployed against those who have decided that vandalism is the appropriate response to being offended by a joke? And against the unelected members of the BMC, who have arrived today at Habitat, without prior notice, and tore the place down with hammers?”
Mr Kamra said he may opt for Elphinstone bridge or any other structure that needs to be demolished as his next show’s venue.
The bridge he referred to saw a stampede in September 2017, killing 23 people. Before the tragedy happened, Mumbaikars had been raising concern over the condition of the bridge and asked the authorities to demolish the old bridge and make a new one. One post on X (then Twitter) a year before the incident tagged the Prime Minister and the then Railway Minister and it turned almost prophetic.
Mr Kamra also criticised people who have been constantly calling his number.
“To those who are busy leaking my number or calling me incessantly: I am sure you’ve realised by now that all unknown calls go to my voicemail, where you will be subjected to the very song that you hate,” he said. “To the media faithfully reporting this circus: Remember that press freedom in India ranks at 159. I will not apologise. What I said is exactly what Mr Ajit Pawar (1st deputy CM) said about Mr Eknath Shinde (2nd Deputy CM). I don’t fear this mob and I will not be hiding under my bed, waiting for this to die down,” the comedian said.
My Statement – pic.twitter.com/QZ6NchIcsM
— Kunal Kamra (@kunalkamra88) March 24, 2025
The action against the studio by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) came a day after Habitat Studio and Unicontinental hotel where it is located were ransacked on Sunday night by Shiv Sena workers.
A temporary shed and other structures comprising the studio, which was created in the basement of the hotel, has been razed, a civic official said.
“It was removed as there is no civic permission to create a studio in the basement. The BMC will check the hotel to see if everything is as per the allowed plan,” the official said.
Earlier on Monday, Habitat Studio announced they were shutting down after Shiv Sena workers vandalised their premises.
In an Instagram post, the studio said they were “shocked, worried and extremely broken by the recent acts of vandalism targeting us.”
Habitat Studio is the same venue where the controversial ‘India’s Got Latent’ show was filmed. It also led to a huge controversy in February.