Two days after stand-up comedian Vir Das' show was cancelled in Bengaluru due to protests by the Hindu Janajagruti Samiti, the right-wing outfit declared it will continue its agitations till he apologises for ‘anti-India’ comments made in the United States in November last year.
Ramesh Shinde, the right-wing group's national spokesperson, warned that more protests would be organised against Das' future shows. “If we don't protest against his statement, it would mean we support what he said,” he was quoted as saying by news agency PTI. He accused Das of defaming India at international level and said if he apologised “the issue [would be] over”.
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Das found himself in the centre of a major row last year after his ‘I come from two Indias’ monologue invited allegations of defaming India.
The Emmy-nominated comedian is a vocal critic of the government in his shows.
On Thursday, his show in Bengaluru was cancelled; on Instagram Das said the decision was due to “unavoidable circumstances”. He also uploaded a video on Twitter in which he addressed issues pertaining to the content of his shows.
{{/usCountry}}On Thursday, his show in Bengaluru was cancelled; on Instagram Das said the decision was due to “unavoidable circumstances”. He also uploaded a video on Twitter in which he addressed issues pertaining to the content of his shows.
{{/usCountry}}"I'm an artist. I shouldn't be on the news. Many assumptions are made about my content. I trust my art and my audience to speak for me. #TrustTheAudience," he tweeted.
Shinde has claimed the Hindu Janajagruti Samiti is not responsible for the cancellation of Das' show and said the group had only filed a police complaint against the comedian. "Police told us the show cannot be cancelled. We said we would protest outside the venue peacefully holding placards," he told PTI.