How Comedy Venues Plan To Protect Themselves After Kunal Kamra Episode

Standup comedy in India picked up after the pandemic with many platforms and venues mushrooming in cities that always had the appetite but lacked spaces for such shows. But recent controversies surrounding India's Got Latent, comedian Samay Raina and podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia, and the more recent Kunal Kamra episode may force a rethink around setting up of spaces and expansion of comedy venues.

Comedy, especially political satire, is often provocative and offensive to the supporters of politicians who may be the subject of such jokes. And while cases and police and administrative action may follow, those offering platforms often end up facing the music despite having no control over the comedy content.

After the controversy over Kunal Kamra's show, in which he took potshots at Shiv Sena's Eknath Shinde after which his supporters vandalised the Habitat comedy club in Mumbai, many comedy space owners are now wondering if they can carry on business as usual, or if they must look at mechanisms to put in place to protect them from the legal troubles.

Read: 'Going To An Address Where...': Kunal Kamra's Swipe As Cops Visit His Mumbai Home

Given the nature of the business, comedy space owners are weighing their best options to keep running the venues and hosting shows without safety worries.

Experienced comedians are not surprised as the current controversy brings back memories of earlier roast shows that sparked backlash. A comedian who was embroiled in one such past controversy told NDTV on the condition of anonymity, that the same cycle is playing out.

"From filmmaking to comedy, everyone is experiencing shrinking freedoms. The nature of standup comedy is to speak truth to power. I think the nature of the craft itself makes it a lightning rod for irate politicians."

"Audience sizes that comedians demand cause anxiety. It's intimidating for the politicians. The impact of the sheer number of people listening to a comedian can be something that can cause concern to them," the comedian added.

Some Likely Solutions

Animesh Katiyar, founder of 'Fur Ball Story' is currently rebuilding his comedy set-up with standup as one of the main attractions. But he is worried that a comedian may end up offending political parties. But as a comedy space owner, he says he has come up with some solutions.

"The loss is 100% ours. However, once my venue reopens, I've found out certain ways through which I can avoid such incidents. I am a law graduate but I don't practice anymore. There are some steps that I can put in for the future to make sure that I am not the only person who is liable for such incidences or damages. If someone is attending a show and he is recording it and spreading it, it could be a comedian as well, in such cases, there should always be a written agreement that in case the content results in an 'xyz' situation, you will have to bear the expenses for the same."

Read: Kunal Kamra Requests Protection From Arrest In Row Over Eknath Shinde Parody

"A similar thing goes for audiences as well because when someone is attending a comic show, honestly, they should sign a waiver where they give up their right to get offended. When you pay for a comedy show, you kind of pay to get insulted and then you get offended. I think this should be a general practice. You paid for satire," Mr Katiyar told NDTV.

He feels a declaration, or waiver, is the only option comedy club owners have.

"One more problem is people do not sign agreements with comics. It's like you come here, we will pay you, you perform, and ticket sales money is ours and the conversation is over. So, on the law side, it is very weak. There should be set terms and conditions where I as a comic declare that my content is mine only and I have nothing to do with the venue. I am only using the venue where they are paying me and it's a commercial deal. On the other hand, people who are paying to attend must also sign a waiver that if they get offended it is their personal problem, like a declaration given at the beginning of movies," he added.

Self-Censorship

The uproar against standup comedians has led to self-censorship by several performers, where they trim out certain topics to avoid controversy. Many are adjusting their content to remain marketable and avoid unnecessary attention.

An established comedian, who has witnessed this trend, told NDTV, "Certain things people have receded with time and certain things people have doubled down on. Punching down has become acceptable but punching up, speaking up to power is where more and more people are censoring themselves. People don't want to attract ire because they want to be marketable. Everyone has to make a living. It has become more lucrative to steer clear."

But what worries even seasoned standup comedians is how performance venues will react to the latest developments.

Read: Kunal Kamra Jokes On Why Narayana Murthy Likes Working 70 Hours A Week

"I am realising that this, and it happens every few years, has become a distraction. This is the fourth or fifth time. Habitat has come back in the past. I don't know what kind of measures venues will take but I hope it's not a 'send us your script' kind of thing. Several spaces already demand scripts. Many larger auditoriums where shows happen are legacy halls. The fear is, this will enter our smaller spaces as well," the comedian added.

Mr Katiyar says it may not be practically possible to get a script for every performance beforehand, given the nature of the industry.

"A comic usually does a 20 or 30-minute show. And it is not a final script. He will do this throughout the year and then launch one show at the end of the year. He picks up jokes from every show that he does. In such cases, it becomes difficult for them to share a script every time. We can do this (ask for scripts) only during the full final show, which gets recorded. I think this is something we must do for survival, ask for a script if a show is being recorded. But I don't know if artists will agree and if it will block their creativity," he said.

A comedian who had faced lawsuits for a roast show in the past recalled an incident when Shiv Sena workers went on a rampage while a fellow comedian was recording his show.

"They broke the cameras and this resulted in a huge loss of revenue even for him. In standup comedy, till you get to a certain point, you do not make money out of it. It is a live art form and with Habitat shutting down it has taken away four rooms in a city like Mumbai. That means fewer spaces to perform. Regular performers will bear the brunt of this. We are killing a lot of potential in terms of offering a space and platform. It is a travesty," the comedian said.

'Lack Of Unity'

According to Mr Katiyar, the industry needs to sit down together to formulate practices to protect themselves.

"Unfortunately, performers and venue owners lack unity. If something happens at Habitat, ten other venues will also be affected. If one of the popular venues doesn't host shows, people will start looking for other places. Such competition is not healthy; it is bad for the whole industry," he says.

"We don't have too much power. Especially, when you are a budding venue, you want as many comics as possible to show up with their clientele for the venue to build up. You feel underpowered on the content side," he adds.

Comedians like Sri Lankan-born Australian Sashi Perera too are worried about the comedy space in India.

"In Australia, politicians get roasted regularly. In Sri Lanka, there is a public performance board that checks every comedy script. If passed, I would assume that it is allowed to perform it without legal consequences, or the venue being destroyed. But I don't write political jokes about Sri Lanka because - the truth is - I'm afraid to."

"In Australia, I have performed at places where swearing is not allowed. In Sri Lanka, it's an unspoken rule (and now a widely held view after the arrest of a comedian) that religion and politics cannot be content for comedy, especially if the performer is female," Ms Perera says.

She, however, remains optimistic about the comedy space in India.

"I have been following what's going on. I would love to perform in India as I know that I have a base there, I was looking into doing shows there soon. But the recent events have been frightening. The main place that I perform is Australia where you can't be jailed for a joke that upsets people - if you did jail, prisons would be full. There are obstacles with performing in countries like India and Sri Lanka, where you must be very careful about jokes, especially if they relate to politics or religion. But it's such a cathartic part of the human experience, to be able to joke about what we see around us - and politics and religion is such a big part of that," she adds.