7 BIGGEST controversial moments of Kunal Kamra: From Salman Khan jokes to Bhavish Aggarwal clashes

Kunal Kamra Controversy: Stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra has again landed in a soup.

In the latest controversy, Kamra, 36, is in the news for his remarks about Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. The Shiv Sena (Shinde) workers allegedly ransacked the hotel’s auditorium, demanding police action against Kunal Kamra, after he called Shinde a ‘Gaddar’ (traitor) in one of his recent performances in Mumbai.

The remark, made a few days ago, while performing a modified version of the famous song Dil To Pagal Hai from the Shahrukh Khan movie of the same name, went viral on social media, with Shinde’s rival politicians sharing it too.

Kunal Kamra is not new to controversies. He has stirred up controversies earlier, though not always for his jokes. Here is a list of controversies involving Kunal Kamra before the fresh one regarding Eknath Shinde.

1- Arnab Goswami Episode

In 2020, Kunal Kamra shared a video of him heckling Republic TV founder Arnab Goswami on board a Mumbai-Lucknow Indigo flight in 2020.

In a two-minute video he posted on his Twitter account (now X), Kamra is heard saying to Arnab, “Here, I am asking coward Arnab about his journalism and he is doing exactly what I expected him to do.” Throughout all this, Arnab kept quiet.

The video divided the internet. Some, including Congress MP Shashi Tharoor supported Kamra. Others, including the then Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri called Kamra’s behaviour “offensive”

After an investigation into the matter, imposed a IndiGo announced a six-month ban on Kamra, terming his act a Level 1 offence. Later, the ban was reduced to three months. Other airlines, including Air India, SpiceJet, and GoAir, also followed suit, imposing similar bans on the comedian.

2- Jokes about Salman Khan

Earlier this month, Kunal Kamra triggered a row with his joke about Bollywood superstar Salman Khan during one of his stand-up shows. Amid reports that Sikandar star Salman Khan was planning to file a defamation suit against Kamra, the comedian said he will not apologise for his jokes.

The joke was about Salman Khan's involvement in two major legal cases: the 1998 blackbuck poaching case and the 2002 hit-and-run case.

The hit-and-run case in 2002 involved Khan allegedly ramming his car into a pavement in Mumbai, resulting in the death of one person and injuries to four others. Khan was acquitted of all charges in 2015 by the Bombay High Court due to inconsistencies in the prosecution's evidence.

3- Kunal Kamra vs OLA CEO Bhavish Aggarwal

Kunal Kamra recently criticised Ola Electric CEO Bhavish Aggarwal on social media, highlighting the company's failure to address increasing customer grievances and unresolved refund issues, among other issues.

Earlier, they were involved in a heated exchange on X after Kamra’s observation about a buildup of Ola Electric scooters outside what seemed to be an Ola store. In response, Aggarwal challenged Kamra, saying, “If you're so concerned, why don't you help? If not, shut up and let us fix real customer issues.”

4-Middle Finger to CJI

In 2020, Kunal Kamra found himself at the centre of another controversy when he mocked the then Chief Justice of India Sharad Arvind Bobde  on social media. In a post on X (then Twitter), Kamra said, “One of these fingers is for CJI Bobde…ok let me not confuse you it’s the middle one,” along with a picture of two figures

The comedian's post came after the apex court granted interim bail to Arnab Goswami in a 2018 abetment to suicide case.

Contempt proceedings were filed against Kamra by the Attorney General KK Venugopal for obscene and derogatory comments against the CJI.

5- Child’s ‘morphed’ video row

In May 2020, Kunal Kamra again landed in a controversy for sharing an edited video of a seven-year-old boy singing for Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Germany.

In the clip, the song ‘Hey Janmabhoomi Bharat’, crooned by the boy, was replaced with the 2010 movie Peepli Live’s famous number ‘Mehengayi daayan khaaye jaat hai’.

Ganesh Pol, the boy's father, called out Kamra and asked him to keep his child away from the his “filthy politics”. Kamra responded saying that he was not mocking the child. The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) took cognisance of the incident and asked Twitter (Now X) and the Delhi Police to take down the tweet.

Kunal Kamra later deleted his post.

6 - ‘Brahmin-Baniya’ remark for Supreme Court

In May 2020, a plea was filed before the Supreme Court against Kunal Kamra for his remark that the Supreme Court was a ‘Brahmin-Baniya’ affair in his show ‘Be Like’.

The petition was filed as an intervention application in an already pending contempt of court against Kunal Kamra.

Earlier in 2021, Attorney-General KK Venugopal had approved contempt proceedings against Kamra for allegedly disparaging the judiciary and judges through his social media posts.

Kumar Kamra responded to the petitions saying that he believes there is a “growing culture of intolerance in the country, where taking offence is seen as a fundamental right which has been elevated to the status of a much loved national sport”.

7-Truly the children of India

In September 2022, Kunal Kamra wrote to the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) asking it to denounce Mahatma Gandhi’s assassin Nathuram Godse to prove that the outfit is pro-Hindu and anti-terrorism. He also asked them to show proof that he had disrespected the Hindu religion. Kunal's letter came days after his show was cancelled in Gurugram after members of the Bajrang Dal and the VHP threatened to protest and disrupt the event

“If there is any clip or show, please show it to me as well. I only do satires on the government. If you are the government’s pet, you can be offended. How did Hindu come into this? I usually don’t think I need to give a test regarding my relationship with god. But I will still give a test and test you as well. I say Jai Sita Ram and Jai Radha Krishna loudly and with pride. If you are truly the children of India, write Godse murdabad. Otherwise I will think you are anti-Hindu and pro-terrorism. You don’t consider Godse to be God, do you?” Kamra wrote.