Kunal Kamra jibe at Shinde stirs controversy

On Sunday, Kamra shared a song that referred to Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde, without naming him, as a ‘rickshawallah’ and traitor who had ‘stolen someone else’s father’

Mumbai: Comedian Kunal Kamra on Sunday stirred up a controversy, sharing a song that referred to Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde, without naming him, as a ‘rickshawallah’ and traitor who had ‘stolen someone else’s father’. Enraged party leaders threatened to teach him a lesson while some Sena workers attacked a venue in Khar where Kamra performs regularly.

Late at night on Sunday, Shiv Sainiks led by Rahool Kanal and Kunal Sarmalkar attacked a comedy club in Khar where the song was filmed (screengrab)

The first line of the song, shared by Kamra in a post on social media platform X, said, “Thane ki rickshaw, chehre pe dadi, ankhon pe chashma, haaye (Rickshaw from Thane, bearded face, spectacles over the eyes, hey)’. It referred to Shinde as a turncoat, saying he could be found hiding in Guwahati, where MLAs led by him took refuge in June 2022 after splitting the undivided Shiv Sena.

Shinde is found more on chief minister Devendra Fadnavis’s lap rather than in the state secretariat, the song said.

“They (BJP) wanted to end dynasty politics, but stole someone’s father,” Kamra said in the video where the song featured, referring indirectly to Shinde’s efforts to project himself as the true heir of Shiv Sena founder and Uddhav Thackeray’s father Bal Thackeray. Uddhav, too, has said in the past that Shinde uses his father’s name for political advantage.

“This is defamation. We can’t tolerate this,” said Shiv Sena MP from Thane and close aide of Shinde, Naresh Mhaske. “If Kunal Kamra is going to attack us like this, Shiv Sainiks will teach him a lesson.”

Mhaske alleged that Shiv Sena (UBT) was hiring comedians to make fun of the Shinde-led party as it has no workers left in its ranks.

Murji Kaka Patel, Shiv Sena MLA from Andheri East, accused Kamra of stooping “very low” by criticising Shinde. “We have filed an FIR. If he does not apologise in two days, we will blacken his face,” said Patel.

Sanjay Nirupam, the Sena’s national spokesperson, accused Kamra of being biased. “He is a Leftist and a biased person. No one takes him seriously,” said Nirupam. “The Congress eco-system feeds him and it is a propaganda song. We condemn it.”

Late at night on Sunday, Shiv Sainiks led by Rahool Kanal and Kunal Sarmalkar attacked a comedy club in Khar, where Kamra performs regularly. Sena workers damaged chairs and raised slogans against the comedian, as seen in videos of the incident shared on social media.

Kanal also submitted a written complaint to the Khar police station, seeking a probe and legal action against Kamra, Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders Aaditya Thackeray and Sanjay Raut and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for involvement in a “pre-planned criminal conspiracy and a systemic paid campaign to malign” Shinde.

HT reached out to Kamra for a reaction, he but said, “No comments.”