Kunal Kamra Wants You to Reconsider Saying 바카라�The Process is the Punishment바카라� at Parties

One could argue Kamra had inundated our social media feeds at one point. He was releasing videos, getting evicted by his landlady for being controversial, opining on burning issues, confronting primetime news anchors, getting banned by airlines, making memes, reacting to memes. That changed two-and-a-half years ago, when he moved to Pondicherry and took up farming. His digital footprint has significantly reduced since, but he바카라�s made his presence felt with what he calls this phase as an 바카라�active citizen바카라�. He recently participated in a gathering marking four years of Umar Khalid being an undertrial. Kamra also filed a petition against the government of India바카라�s proposed fact-checking units as per the 2023 amendment to the IT Rules.

Such units would deter creators (influencers, publications) and disseminators (social media, OTT platforms) from spreading 바카라�fake news바카라� and 바카라�misinformation바카라�. The amendment allowed the fact-checking units to take suo moto (on their own accord) cognisance of such instances, or act on complaints based on what any random citizen found offensive in a film, show or social media post. Kamra, with the help of his lawyers Arti Raghavan, Navroz Seervai, Darius Khambata and Meenaz Kakalia, filed a petition against it in the Bombay High Court in April, 2023. Eighteen months later, the HC bench struck down the amendment, citing that such a unit would infringe the constitutional right to freedom of expression. Whatever one might think of his comedy바카라�the Indian Internet owes a debt to Kamra for challenging the government. What he바카라�s accomplished is rare and unusual for most celebrities in India.

바카라�I think one major realisation from the last six years,바카라� Kamra said during a relaxed phone interview, 바카라�is that if you have a mic and an audience then you should make the most of it. If you바카라�ve created something, no one else is going to give you the space for your ideas.바카라� Having known Raghavan for close to a decade, Kamra admits that she approached him with the 2023 amendment to the IT Rules, telling him how it might affect his work and country. She sent him a draft of the petition, then Kamra suggested his own changes. After submitting it, Kamra trusted Raghavan to appear on the designated court dates. 바카라�Arti is a front-bencher, I know she will appear unless she has a medical emergency.바카라�

The moral courage of Indian celebrities to speak out on socio-political issues has been hotly debated for the past decade, since Shah Rukh Khan made his 바카라�intolerance is rising바카라� comment바카라� and later retracted it. Aamir Khan, after admitting that he and his ex-wife Kiran Rao had thought about settling abroad, was dropped from a lucrative endorsement deal. Learning from these two stars, most (even moderately) famous people have either endorsed the government or chosen to steer clear of anything topical or controversial.

Kamra doesn바카라�t judge them today, something he said he used to do five years ago. 바카라�See, these guys [the Indian government] are nasty. They바카라�re practically rogue elements in power. Anybody with kids will not have the courage to challenge them. Your progeny and loved ones, they바카라�re what humanise you. What do humans have바카라�fear, ambition?바카라� According to the 35-year-old, celebrities like him don바카라�t have the social or capital baggage, which many others do. He keeps insisting he바카라�s just a citizen doing his part바카라�by participating in the democratic processes available to him. When asked if he felt 바카라�heroic바카라� even for a moment, Kamra delivered a list of names that helped him recontextualise his uprightness. 바카라�P Sainath, even at 75, is still holding on to his college ideas. Anand Patwardhan, Nikhil Dey, Aruna Roy, Umar Khalid바카라� I can go on. The list is endless. The only difference is I have one million followers,바카라� says Kamra. 바카라�I think there should be a way to calculate our followers to decency ratio.바카라�

Raghavan notes that many like Kamra have shown courage despite being threatened with loss of work opportunities, along with their personal liberty. Therefore, she concedes it바카라�s never easy speaking truth to power바카라�and it바카라�s not about this government and it doesn바카라�t happen only in India. 바카라�We witnessed the lonely struggle of Indian women wrestlers, where very few sports celebrities supported their cause,바카라� she says. 바카라�Not everyone can be Muhammad Ali.바카라� If Kamra바카라�s journey has been lonely, he doesn바카라�t wish to dwell on it. When I ask if there바카라�s a lack of unity among his stand-up comedy colleagues from Mumbai, which makes them susceptible to goons who threaten comedians with violence, he laughs it off 바카라� 바카라�All the people are united... in their silence.바카라�

However, one thing irks him constantly. The phrase 바카라�the process is the punishment바카라� has become an oft quoted thing in liberal circles these days. 바카라�We should stop repeating this line. All these years of the liberals saying this바카라� the culmination is bulldozer justice, encounters, trigger-happy [officials]. The process might be a punishment, but the opposite of the process is a crime.바카라� Raghavan바카라�s believes the phrase is correctly coined in a specific context 바카라� 바카라�... where vagaries of the process (including bail, indefinite detention, prolonged trials) can wear a person out and make an eventual acquittal irrelevant.바카라� Raghavan observes how those wrongfully prosecuted or incarcerated are never meaningfully compensated for what the system stole from them. She opines that our legal system needs a serious overhaul to make it more 바카라�accountable, accessible and litigant centric.바카라� Kamra bats for legal processes, saying more citizens should approach HCs with petitions and 바카라�bring them back to life.바카라�

Being a conscientious celebrity creates its own challenges. One slip-up, and the entire troll army takes off on the person바카라�as filmmaker Anubhav Sinha found out recently. To be fair, in his case, it wasn바카라�t even a slip-up, but a case of deliberate misinterpretation. Taking on the government or espousing progressive values can put a target on one바카라�s back. Kamra isn바카라�t bothered about it because it바카라�s a target only if there바카라�s a gap between your words and deeds. 바카라�Raise a bill, pay the GST, don바카라�t take money in cash, stop at a signal, don바카라�t drink and drive, don바카라�t slide into the DMs of girls ten years younger than you바카라�these are just normal things, man.바카라�

The comedian believes only productivity can protect his mental health. Which is why he바카라�s excited about his farming initiative바카라�and what it will lead to. By his own admission, he바카라�s constantly working on his craft, trying to share what he has learned through a series of YouTube videos. 바카라�I don바카라�t do corporate gigs, I don바카라�t do colleges, and I don바카라�t do weddings. I do small shows바카라�30 to 50 seaters. When the material is good, I바카라�ll do 100 seaters. Then I바카라�ll go abroad.바카라�

Whatever money he saves, he pours into documentaries. He produced Varrun Sukhraj바카라�s Too Much Democracy, one of the three noted documentaries about the year-long farmers바카라� agitation at Delhi바카라�s border. He directed a documentary on the gig economy called The Dark Side of the Indian Start-up Ecosystem, releasing it on his YouTube channel this August. Another documentary by Sukhraj will document Shyam Rangeela바카라�s strife to file his nomination papers as a candidate in Varanasi, opposite prime minister Modi. Rangeela alleged that the Election Commission of India kept inventing technicalities to reject his candidacy. The film is called Jamoora, and is expected to release this month. A documentary costs around Rs 20 lakhs to produce for Kamra바카라�money, he admits, he바카라�ll never see again. 바카라�This is my version of collecting art바카라�rich people buy paintings, I make these movies. It바카라�s great to have a catalogue of such movies available to watch on Google.바카라�

The striking down of the fact-checking units is the second such verdict to go in favour of the citizens this year after the withdrawal of the Broadcast Bill 2024. Many writers and stand-up comics and NGOs, like the Internet Freedom Foundation, spearheaded the petition against it. Kamra isn바카라�t celebrating his victory just yet. 바카라�Inko rokna easy thodi hai! [They won바카라�t stop easily!]. I바카라�m assuming they바카라�ll go to the Supreme Court next. Dedh din ka hero banke kuch fayda nahin hai. [No point in thinking of yourself as a short-term hero!]바카라�

Despite the common man바카라�s widespread cynicism about Indian judiciary, Kamra and Raghavan insist that citizens can keep the powerful in check through courts. 바카라�It바카라�s not a question of faith,바카라� says Raghavan. 바카라�The judiciary isn바카라�t a religion. As citizens, we must always hold our various organs of state to account, including the judiciary, demand transparency and push for reform.바카라�