Kunal Kamra is no stranger to stirring rows: 5 times when the comedian landed in hot water

NEW DELHI: Political satirist and comedian

Kunal Kamra

on Sunday landed himself in fresh trouble after he cracked a joke about Maharashtra deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde, terming him a "gaddar."
Kamra's remarks led to a violent retaliation from Shiv Sena, as workers stormed the venue where Kamra performed and vandalized the properties of the studio and hotel premises.
Meanwhile, Maharashtra Police have also registered an FIR against Kamra for taking potshots at Shinde.
However, this is not the first time Kamra has made headlines for his controversial statements.

Here are 5 incidents when Kamra found himself in shallow waters

Showdown with Arnab Goswami

Kamra sparked controversy after he engaged in a confrontation with journalist Arnab Goswami in 2020. In a video shared by Kamra on X, he was seen mocking Goswami while traveling on an Indigo airline from Mumbai to Lucknow.
“Here, I am asking coward Arnab about his journalism, and he is doing exactly what I expected him to do,” Kamra was heard saying.
As the controversy snowballed, Kamra was banned by Indigo, SpiceJet, GoAir, and Air India.

Mocking Kangana Ranaut

In 2020, Kamra supported the BMC's action against Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut’s Bandra bungalow.
During his interview with Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut, Kamra expressed support for the demolition and posed with Raut in a photo session with a toy bulldozer.
During the interview, Kamra also suggested that Sanjay Raut should be made the President of India. This throwback moment is now gaining attention as the comedian faces backlash for his latest controversy.

Contempt of Court Case

A petition against Kamra was filed in the Supreme Court after he claimed that the apex court was a ‘Brahmin-Baniya’ affair.
The petition was filed as an intervention application in an already pending contempt of court case against Kunal Kamra.
In 2021, Kamra, in his affidavit, defended his tweets against the judiciary, saying India would be reduced to a “country of incarcerated artists and flourishing lapdogs” if powerful people and institutions show an inability to “tolerate rebuke or criticism.”
"We are witnessing an assault on the

freedom of speech

and expression, with comedians like Munawar Farooqi being jailed for jokes they have not made, and school students being interrogated for sedition. At such a time, I hope this court will demonstrate that the freedom of speech and expression is of cardinal constitutional value and recognize that the possibility of being offended is a necessary incident to the exercise of this right," he added.

Kamra vs OLA scooter

Kamra and OLA Electric chief Bhavish Agarwal engaged in a war of words after the comedian pointed out the company's failure to address increasing customer grievances and unresolved refund issues, among other concerns.
It all started when Kamra raised concerns about the service center situation of the company's electric scooters. Sharing an image depicting a large number of EV scooters being parked at an OLA service center on X (formerly Twitter), Kamra wrote: “Do Indian consumers have a voice? Do they deserve this? Two-wheelers are many daily wage workers' lifeline…”
Agarwal responded to Kamra and said that it was a paid post and the comedian could ‘come and help.’
“Since you care so much, Kunal Kamra, come and help us out! I’ll even pay more than you earned for this paid tweet or from your failed comedy career. Or else sit quiet and let us focus on fixing the issues for the real customers. We’re expanding our service network fast, and backlogs will be cleared soon,” Bhavish said.

Showstopper VHP

Kamra's show in Gurugram was canceled by the organizers after Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) allegedly threatened to disrupt the event.
Kamra was accused of cracking jokes about Hindu deities, which the VHP said could lead to tension in the city.
“In the name of freedom of expression, they are out to insult Hindus. How can making jokes about Hindu deities be part of any culture and entertainment?” said Binod Bansal, national spokesperson for VHP.