Maharashtra minister Shambhuraj Desai on Thursday criticized comedian Kunal Kamra for his recently reposted video targeting Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. Desai said it was now time for Kamra to face the ‘prasad of Shiv Sena,’ referencing the ongoing controversy surrounding Kamra’s ‘traitor’ comment aimed at Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde. Desai accused the comedian of deliberately insulting prominent leaders like Shinde, Sitharaman, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“Kunal Kamra has crossed all limits; the situation has escalated, and now it’s time for him to get ‘prasad.’ Wherever he is hiding, we will drag him out. Kamra must face the consequences of his actions,” ANI quoted Desai as saying.
Desai also remarked that Shiv Sena workers had already expressed their anger by visiting Kamra’s studio after the release of his first video. “Kamra’s actions are deliberate, and now it’s time for him to receive the ‘prasad’ of Shiv Sena in our own style. We are MLAs, ministers, but first and foremost, we are Shiv Sainiks, and our patience is running out,” he added.
Furthermore, Desai announced that Eknath Shinde had promised legal action against Kamra and urged the comedian to face Shiv Sainiks. “We want to tell the police not to test our patience. Catch him from wherever he is, put him in a tyre, and give him ‘prasad’,” Desai said, drawing a parallel to third-degree torture.
Kamra has been reposting videos of the parody songs from his controversial show at The Habitat in Mumbai, where he mocked Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde by calling him a ‘traitor.’ This jibe referred to Shinde’s 2022 rebellion against Uddhav Thackeray, which led to the split of the Shiv Sena. The first video showed a parody of the song ‘Hum honge Kamyaab,’ with visuals depicting the vandalism by Shiv Sena workers after the video went viral.
In the second video, reposted on Wednesday, Kamra targeted Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman through a parody of the song ‘Hawa Hawai’ from the 1987 movie Mr. India. Both videos were performed during the same show that sparked the initial controversy.
