Kapil Sharma is one of India’s most well-known comedians. There was a time when no actor worth their salt could afford to miss being on his show to promote a film ahead of release. While some would say Kapil Sharma is exceedingly funny, others find his humour trite and crass. I think both claims are partly true. I have little time for Sharma’s silly jokes based on stereotypes or where he makes fun of his wife. Jokes that punch down aren't funny; they are merely easy. Recently, however, Sharma decided to punch up at someone powerful – he made fun of Arnab Goswami many of the tweeple were livid!
The Kapil Sharma Show featured Kiku Sharda as Arnab Goswami in his belligerent anchor avatar.
The episode made several jokes at the expense of Goswami in particular and his brand of sensational journalism in general; including the now famous ‘mujhe drugs do’ rant.
There are many who feel that Arnab Goswami is ‘fighting for justice’ for Shushant Singh Rajput and that he is heading a crusade against Bollywood’s ‘drug mafia’.
On the one hand are people who adore Salman Khan, while on the other are those who bear him a visceral hatred for his crimes – both real and imagined. His association with the show was another reason they called for its boycott.
Bigg Boss is another show that people feel is garbage – they called for its boycott as well... also because of the Salman angle.
They were so angry with the show that they went ahead and unsubscribed from the channel that aired it.
It was pointed out that shows produced by Salman Khan are sponsors on Goswami’s Republic channel; by that token, people should boycott that as well.
While there are other pressing issues in the country such as the tanking economy, spiralling COVID numbers, crimes against women, Goswami has continued to follow the SSR story.
Watching a primetime ‘debate’ featuring Goswami, one may be forgiven for thinking that they are watching a drama channel or even a reality show. The anchor has long been criticised for his sensationalist armchair-reporting style and his divisive agenda.
Some believe that his brand of ‘journalism’ is an abomination aimed only at increasing TRPs. Goswami’s channel consistently toes the official line while questioning the opposition.
There are many who think of Goswami as a kind of primetime buffoon; good for some theatrics and a few laughs --- rather like the Kapil show.
Arnab Goswami and his Republic TV are evidently not in the journalism business, feel a lot of people.
It is the job of the media to ask tough questions of the government and hold those in power accountable. The is supposed to be adversarial vis-à-vis those in power, but Arnab and his channel are consistently seen to defend the government.
They feel that SSR’s tragic death has been used by everyone for their own purposes and to spin their own narratives. In the end, we are back to square one; as the death is now officially declared a suicide.
From time to time, we have trending hashtags like #BoycottKapilSharma and others against Arnab Goswami as well. However, the fact is that these social media tempests-in-teacups do no harm to the powerful people involved. While audiences may fight amongst themselves, everyone feeds off everyone else in the entertainment ecosystem – they are codependent for their very survival. While Goswami may rail against Bollywood bigwigs, his channel is certainly not shy of accepting sponsorships from those very sources.
Kapil Sharma is in showbiz, so even the negative #BoycottKapilSharma trend meant that more people watched his show. In showbiz, all publicity is good publicity; even the most negative. Evidently, this is also true for Arnab Goswami.
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