International free speech watchdog Artists at Risk Connection (ARC) has called upon police to drop charges against comedian Kunal Kamra who has been booked for public mischief and defamation for jokes on Maharashtra deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde.
The ARC support comes at a time when BookMyShow, India's biggest online ticket booking site, has removed mentions of Kamra on its website after a letter from an activist of the Shinde-led Sena faction who has been booked for vandalising the venue in Mumbai where Kamra had performed.
The ARC said in a statement: "Artists at Risk Connection calls on the police in Mumbai to drop the charges filed against Indian comedian Kunal Kamra and for the authorities to prosecute the perpetrators who attacked The Habitat, a prominent cultural venue in Mumbai."
ARC executive director Julie Trébault said in the statement dated April 1: "The coordinated targeting of comedian Kunal Kamra and The Habitat by Indian state authorities and political supporters is a dangerous assault on artistic freedom in India…. The criminalisation of comedy and the deliberate destruction of independent cultural spaces are a clear violation of the fundamental right to freedom of expression and cultural rights under international law.
"These repressive tactics stand in stark contrast to India’s democratic values and must be unequivocally condemned and halted."
On Saturday, PTI quoted a letter from Sena youth leader Rahool Kanal to BookMyShow CEO Ashish Hemrajani: "I am writing to express my sincere gratitude for your continued support of your team to take the said artist out of your sale and promotion listing, thank you for even taking him out of the BookMyShow search history. Your belief in maintaining peace and at the same time respecting our emotions has been instrumental.”
While the platform has not spoken about its action, Kamra posted on X: “Hello BookMyShow can you please confirm if I have your platform to list my shows if not it’s fine. I understand."
Scriptwriter Darab Farooqui posted on X: "Here's an idea. If BookMyShow removed Kunal Kamra from its app. Why don't we all uninstall the BookMyShow app from our phones? 1. They are exercising their freedom; we must exercise ours. 2. If they censor what we like, we should censor what we dislike."
Kamra has not adhered to the three summonses of the police in Mumbai after Madras High Court granted him anticipatory bail until April 7.
Amnesty India on Saturday posted on X: "The Maharashtra government must stop intimidating comedian Kunal Kamra and members of the audience of his stand-up show. Exercising the right to freedom of expression without fear or unlawful interference is central to living in an open and fair society."
Previously, Kamra refused to apologise for his jokes in which he sang a parody and alluded to Shinde as a “traitor” for engineering the split in the Sena. Uddhav Thackeray, who leads the other faction of the party, and his allies have backed Kamra.
On Saturday, farmers in Kolhapur protesting against a proposed highway on their land played this song in protest. Another parody song of Kamra on Union finance minister Nirmala Seetharaman, set to the tune of the 1987 Bollywood song Hawa Hawai, was restricted on YouTube on a complaint of copyright violation by music label T-Series.
Kamra has apologised to fans after the police summoned some of those who attended his show "Naya Bharat" on February 2 in Mumbai. The Habitat has declared that it is shutting down.
Last week, Kamra posted on X: "How to Kill an Artist: A Step-by-Step Guide. 1) Outrage — just enough for brands to stop commissioning their work. 2) Outrage more — until private and corporate gigs dry up. 3) Outrage louder — so big venues won't take risk. 4) Outrage violently — until even the smallest spaces shut their doors. 5) Summon their audience for questioning — turning art into a crime scene."