What should be the limits of comedy? Who is supposed to set the limits?

The Limits of Comedy: Who Decides?

A YouTube roast-comedy/talent show India’s Got Latent and a recent controversy surrounding it has reignited the questions you read in the headline of this article. The controversy primarily revolves around podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia, who was one of the panellists in the latest episode of the show, and asks a contestant:

"Would you rather watch your parents have sex every day for the rest of your life or join in once to make it stop forever?"

Intended as a joke, the remark was undeniably far away from it, and no doubt it was of poor taste and inappropriate. Due to the massive flak on social media against both Ranveer and the show’s host, comedian Samay Raina, that portion from the video is now removed and Ranveer has also issued an apology. End of story, right? No.

Now, there are calls to ban the entire show and censor content on platforms like YouTube. Let’s be honest, most of the people crying for these bans don’t just have a problem with this one remark, they have a problem with comedy itself. They get offended every other day over every other thing and think their taste should dictate what others can or cannot like.

Comedy is not meant to be for everyone, it’s subjective—what’s funny for one might be offensive to another. That’s why different types of comedy exist. If you don’t like roast comedy or one with abusive language, The Kapil Sharma Show exists for you. But just because something doesn't suit your taste doesn’t mean it shouldn’t exist at all.

People contesting on this show know exactly what they’re signing up for. Roast formats are meant to be brutal and everyone involved is fully aware that they’ll be made fun of. If they don’t have a problem with it, why should these morality rakshaks on the internet? This is exactly what happened with AIB’s roast a few years ago—some people got “offended,” FIRs were filed, and an entire genre of comedy got shut down in this country until recently because some didn't have the appetite for it.

If a joke crosses the line, the audience will naturally call it out and reject it, as it happened in this case. But FIRs? How is that supposed to be acceptable? Once you start censoring because something hurt your feelings, where does it stop? Just look at the CBFC, India’s so-called film certification board. Instead of just rating films, it kills them, chopping out anything remotely bold or artistic while happily letting soft porn pass with a U/A certificate. This is what happens when censorship takes over—good content isn't let to be good enough, and absolute trash gets a free pass.

The reality is simple, if you don’t like a certain type of content, don’t watch it. Nobody is forcing you to. In fact, this show we're discussing now wasn't even made for the category of audiences who have jumped on to lash the very format of the show. This attitude is simply entitlement in the veil of morality.

—Siddhant Sharma

Roasting and Responsibility

People nowadays seldom laugh; however, they smile as a matter of good gesture and to give a message to the world that they are happy. People no longer laugh at comedy. Hence, these roast shows shall go on, as they make people laugh by seeing that another person is being naked (literally) threadbare in front of the public. Therefore, they shall go on. There is an art in making fun of oneself rather than making fun of others. The gruelling problem that arises is when you make fun of people who are not before you and thus cannot give you a befitting reply then and there.

Though importance should not be given to the comments of Mr Ranveer since he was speaking in the capacity of an apparent ‘roaster’, given the fact that he has interviewed some constitutional offices of the country, the larger issue arising for self-reflection is whether people who have done serious work in life shall face punishment when they do abysmal things.

Ranveer referred to the parents of the person standing on the stage, subjecting him to roasting. The issue is not that the person has been roasted, but that he has been roasted with reference to his parents, who were not present on the stage. People shall not have the license to roast a person when that person is not before them.

Therefore, there is a need to lay down a model code of conduct for roasters. While we are conscious that roasters have their unique models, people who have done serious work in their lives and, by that, have influenced many lives shall conduct themselves in a dignified manner befitting their status. They owe this conduct to society.

The call for banning the entire show has been pointed out by my co-author to be an extreme step, and according to him, such a call is given by those who do not understand the meaning of roasting. Banning is an extreme step. It will end the livelihood of many. It will destroy families. I am with my co-author on the non-banning of the show. The people calling for the ban are within their rights to do so. They may not be fans of roasting and may call themselves the moral safeguards of society. However, if these so-called moral safeguards, portraying themselves in public as morally upright, do not remain present in society, then these events will go on unnoticed. Hence, we need people who will call for extreme steps. It is, however, for the wise set of people (apparently the politicians) to come out with a policy for regulating these roast shows.

Mr Ranveer’s comments have come into the public gaze because he is a known figure; however, many such incidents have occurred where people who are not on the stage have been referred to and lampooned. While giving moral sermons is not considered "cool" (in the language of Gen-Z), for the apparent modernism of Gen-Z, one cannot dilute the institutional morality that safeguards Indian society. A country thrives when its institutions thrive.

While I am not sitting in a chair from where I can advise any person, it would be befitting for Mr Ranveer to seek an apology by going on the stage from where he made that comment.

—Hritam Saha