The Habitat has reopened after Kunal Kamra's controversial stand up act. Fans say, ‘Welcome back’

The Habitat Comedy Club has reopened after being vandalised following Kunal Kamra's controversial performance.

The Habitat Comedy Club, which was vandalised and temporarily shut after Kunal Kamra's controversial stand-up comedy act, has reopened according to their latest Instagram post.

A screengrab of Kunal Kamra's act in The Habitat. (X/@kunalkamra88))

Habitat announces impressive lineup

The Habitat recently took to their Instagram handle and posted an impressive line up of comedians who would be soon performing at the venue. This includes Abhishek Upmanyu, Abhijeet Ganguly and Abhishek Bhutwani among others. 

 

Fans react

The fans were excited that their favurite venue for cultural shows and stand-ups was back. One fan commented said, “Welcome back guys!”. Another one chimed in excitedly and wrote, “Comedy Shuru Kiya jaaye (Let the comedy begin)”. One user could not contain his happiness and said, “Glad you guys are officially back!”. Another one said, “Welcome back❤️”.

Why did The Habitat shut down?

The Habitat Comedy Club was vandalised after comedian Kunal seemingly made a 'gaddar' (traitor) joke on Maharashtra deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde. The Habitat had issued a statement on the incident and said it does "not support hate or harm of any kind".

According to report by HT, Shiv Sena workers had stormed the Habitat comedy club at Hotel UniContinental in Mumbai's Khar and vandalised the property. The club said that it was "shocked, worried and extremely broken by the recent acts of vandalism targeting us".

On March 24, Habitat Studio announced they were shutting down after Shiv Sena workers vandalised its premises. In an Instagram post, the studio said, “We are shocked, worried and extremely broken by the recent acts of vandalism targeting us. Artistes are solely responsible for their views and creative choices”, and it has "never been involved in the content performed by them."

"But recent events have made us rethink about how we get blamed and targeted every time almost like we are the proxy for the performer", it said.

“We are shutting down till we figure out the best way to provide a platform for free expression without putting ourselves and our property in jeopardy. We invite all artistes, audience and stakeholders to discuss and share their views free and request,” the note concluded.