Under attack for his monologue I come from two India’s, stand-up comic Vir Das has found backing in Congress leaders Kapil Sibal and Shashi Tharoor but criticism from their party colleague Abhishek Manu Singhvi for “vilifying the nation”.
As the issue gathered steam, senior Congress leader Sibal tweeted that none can doubt that there are two Indias. “Just that we don’t want an Indian to tell the world about it. We are intolerant and hypocritical,” he tweeted.
Vir Das
None can doubt that there are two India’s
Just that we don’t want an Indian to tell the world about it
We are intolerant and hypocritical
— Kapil Sibal (@KapilSibal) November 17, 2021
In a tweet Tuesday night, Tharoor praised Das as a stand-up comedian who knows that the real meaning of the term “stand up” is not physical but moral. Das spoke for millions in the six-minute take on the ‘Two Indias’ he hails from and stands up for, he said.
A stand-up comedian who knows the real meaning of the term “stand up” is not physical but moral — @thevirdas spoke for millions in this 6-minute take on the Two Indias he hails from & stands up for. https://t.co/94h4SnyZhX
“This is a joke, but it’s just not funny.” Brilliant.— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) November 16, 2021
Tagging a tweet by a person who said he has filed a complaint against Das with Mumbai police, Tharoor tweeted, “We know which India this comes from.”
However, Singhvi hit out at Das, saying that “generalising the evils of a few individuals and vilifying the nation as a whole in front of the world is just not done”.
“The people who painted India in front of the west as a nation of saperas and luteras during the colonial rule have not ceased to exist,” the Rajya Sabha MP said on Twitter using the hashtag VirDas.
Generalising the evils of a few individuals and vilifying the nation as a whole in front of the world is just not done!
The people who painted India in front of the west as a nation of saperas and luteras during the colonial rule have not ceased to exist.#VirDas
— Abhishek Singhvi (@DrAMSinghvi) November 16, 2021
Mahua Moitra, TMC Lok Sabha MP tweeted her reaction
Thank you to @thevirdas for speaking truth about Two Indias
Reactions also from 2 Indias- one having a laugh & other filing complaints with police!
— Mahua Moitra (@MahuaMoitra) November 17, 2021
Das, who is currently in the US, on Monday uploaded a video on YouTube. The six-minute video titled I come from two India’s is part of his recent performance at the John F Kennedy Centre in Washington DC.
The well-known artiste, who has also dabbled in cinema, touched on various topics in the clip, including the farm protests, the battle against Covid, the duality in response to women, particularly rape, and the crackdown on comedians.
