Re: Kunal Kamra vs Eknath Shinde

1. Watching Kunal Kamra’s uploaded video and then seeing Shinde’s soldiers show up to trash Habitat Studio, only to end up scratching their heads like, “Wait, where’d this guy disappear to in an hour?”—honestly, I felt bad for them. Their confusion was almost pitiable.

2. Uploading a stand-up comedy set on YouTube involves a ton of editing and takes time—Kamra wasn’t going to just sit there waiting for them. This basic fact seems to have flown over the poor guys’ heads. Eknathrao should shell out a bit and treat these workers to a couple of comedy shows so they get how it works!

3. Given how Kunal Kamra’s comedy quality is sliding downhill, he might soon end up as a spokesperson for the Shiv Sena (UBT) crew in a matter of days!

4. If that happens, Kunal Kamra could rank third or fourth on the list of laughable content creators in the UBT camp! The “Clerk-in-Chief” would, of course, hold the top spot unchallenged!!

5. In that skit, Kamra actually took more jabs at our revered Modi ji and Amit Shah. Yet, oddly enough, Modi’s devotees didn’t seem to top the list of the offended! Are Modi fans turning tolerant, or have they just given up on caring about Kamra?

6. On this occasion, at least, it’s a silver lining that those in Maharashtra—whose regime once threw people in jail for a month over sharing poetry and specialized in “hospitality” that left welts on backs—suddenly discovered their love for free speech. Quite the fortunate twist!!

7. The funniest part of this whole mess? UBT MP Priyanka Chaturvedi’s gem of a reaction on a TV channel. When you send someone to the Rajya Sabha who doesn’t even know their own party’s history, you get these divine moments of absurdity!

8. Chaturvedi madam boldly declared, “Show me one instance where our party has trashed a studio or something—we don’t do that at all!” Hearing that, the first person who popped into my mind was our very own Nikhil Wagle!!

9. They say Kamra pulled off this stunt and then safely hightailed it to Tamil Nadu. Given that the ruling party there recently trashed YouTuber Savukku Shankar’s house, the irony of this escapade just hits different...

10. Kamra posed with his beloved pocket Constitution for a selfie—seems like it’s the latest trend! It’s like those Instagram hipsters posting “aesthetic” pics with Murakami, Harari, or coffee-table books, just taken to the next level!

11. The quirky thing about this Constitution-lover gang? They’re so attached to that little booklet but probably never bother opening it! They don’t even have the basic curiosity to ask what the First Amendment was, who made it, why, or how...

12. Who exactly put curbs on free speech under Article 19 by amending the Constitution, and what impact did it have on our laws and justice system? Kamra and his “Prince Pappu” might not care, but we should—so if you’re curious, a quick Google won’t hurt!

13. Speaking of the law—our Maharashtra CM issued a threat/warning to Kamra right from the assembly floor. As a Marathi citizen, I humbly request he follows through. He’s law-educated, so he should tell Maharashtra what Kamra’s exact crime is, under which section, and what “action” means...

14. If he doesn’t, and Kamra outsmarts the government’s lawyers in court, imagine this: a CM announces action against a stand-up comic from the assembly, only for the guy to keep clowning around freely. As a Marathi, I dread the embarrassment of our CM looking like an "all bark - no bite" character nationwide...

15. Kunal Kamra’s starting to look a bit like Amitbhai Shah these days. Is there some Freud or Jung theory that says if you hate someone too much, you start resembling them? If anyone knows, drop it in the comments!

16. In that video, Kamra threw some pretty low-grade jokes at Ambani Senior and Junior. As beneficiaries of the “Mukeshbhai Jio Scheme,” we’ve got to register our protest here!\

17. Kamra’s stand-up also dehumanized the elderly, fat-shamed folks, and mocked people rising from poverty—yet somehow, no one seemed too bothered by that...

18. Just like our German Shepherd Dhruv Rathee, Kamra’s got fans abroad too—you can tell from the dollars and euros rolling in via YouTube Super Chats! YouTube takes 30%, Kamra keeps the rest, and then our Nirmala aunty swoops in for her 30%—boosting the GDP!!

19. Back to the action—Shinde’s Thane workers smashed Habitat because Kamra performed there. In Solapur, Shinde’s guys caught comedian Pranit More mid-set, broke his hand in front of the audience! Now you decide which Shinde’s crew takes the cake!!

Democracy, Demography & Destiny : Part 3

This series is designed to give readers a basic grasp of the confounding puzzles that the strange arithmetic of population poses to democratic systems today! In this third installment, we’ll wander into the world of the fair-skinned—the West—to discuss population and democracy issues tied to migration...

Part 3: The West’s Invitation!

Migration to the West isn’t exactly a new phenomenon for India. Every year, thousands of Indians become non-residents for reasons like education, jobs, or personal growth! Lately, as communication and transport have become easier, more accessible, and cheaper, this trend has only grown year after year...

Now, here’s a key point: for decades, Western countries have consistently pursued migration-friendly policies! In the last part, we saw how the UAE puts tight restrictions on granting citizenship to migrants. Western nations, on the other hand, adopted liberal policies, and as a result, talent from across the globe started pooling in the West. Take America, for instance—the “American Dream” and its liberal migration policies gifted the US tech titans like Sundar Pichai, Satya Nadella, and Elon Musk! Google, Microsoft, and Tesla—mega-powerful American companies—are led by migrants. 

These are the flashy examples—now let’s look at the data! Of all the US companies valued at a billion dollars or more, over half (55%) were founded by people who came from outside! Forbes, a big name in the business world, summarized a research report from the National Foundation of American Policy in 2022. Here’s a juicy bit worth noting:

“Immigrants have started more than half (319 of 582, or 55%) of America’s startup companies valued at $1 billion or more,” the analysis. “Moreover, nearly two-thirds (64%) of U.S. billion-dollar companies (unicorns) were founded or cofounded by immigrants or the children of immigrants. Almost 80% of America’s unicorn companies (privately-held, billion-dollar companies) have an immigrant founder or an immigrant in a key leadership role, such as CEO or vice president of engineering.”

You’ll see a similar picture, more or less, in Canada and Europe too! The Brits even went as far as making the son-in-law of Infosys’s famously “simple and pure” Sudhabai Murthy—yes, Rishi Sunak—their Prime Minister! Sunak’s parents, of Indian descent, migrated to Britain from Africa. Meanwhile, London’s mayor for the past nine years, Sadiq Khan, has grandparents who moved there from Pakistan. You’ll find such examples across nearly every major field in the Western world.

Rishi Sunak and Akshata Murthy with their pet dog Nova in No 10

.(Photo: Simon Walker/No 10 Downing Street)

For decades, skilled workers from around the globe have flowed westward, and it’s been a clear win-win for both the host countries and the migrants! These nations’ economies kept getting stronger, which made even more skilled folks eager to head there—a virtuous cycle of prosperity that spun for years... Check the HDI (Human Development Index) of these migrant-welcoming countries, and it gets even clearer. 

World map of countries and territories by HDI scores in increments of 0.050
(based on 2022 data, published in 2024) 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_Development_Index#/media/File:HDI2022Incrimental.svg

Based on 2022 figures, the US clocks in at 0.927. Canada does even better at 0.935, while the UK—home to Sudhabai’s PM son-in-law—hits 0.940. For comparison, India’s HDI in the same year is just 0.644. Since this index measures prosperity, health, and education, it’s obvious that these Western nations, scoring above 0.900, are brimming with both wealth and well-being!

Now, as we saw in the Korean case earlier in this series, prosperity tends to tank birth rates (TFR)—and that trend holds true in the West too! Birth rates among Western citizens started dipping in the ’60s and ’70s. By 2000, they’d fallen below the replacement level of 2.1. Looking at this decade’s numbers, Europe’s TFR is 1.53, while North America’s is 1.8. It’s not as dire as Korea, but the decline has been steady and significant...

The total fertility rate in OECD countries, 2023
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Total_fertility_rate#/media/File:Fertility_rate_in_OECD.svg

Yet, despite this drop in birth rates, Western countries kept progressing unabated because skilled workers kept pouring in from around the world. The success of this migration policy owes a lot to neoliberal ideology. Free trade, open borders allowing the free flow of labor, and a complementary culture of inclusivity and tolerance—these were the hallmarks of neoliberalism. There’s even a Reddit community of American neoliberals (r/neoliberal) with a slogan that sums it up: "Free trade, open borders; taco trucks on every corner"!

The benefits of this policy for Western economies are undeniable. But it’s not just that—it also gave rise to cosmopolitan cities. People from all over settled there, decking out these cities with their languages, arts, music, festivals, and cuisines! In metropolises like London, New York, and Toronto, you can find Marathi vada pav, Gujarati dhokla, Punjabi butter chicken, Bengali rasgulla, Udupi idli, Korean noodles, Chinese rice, Mexican tacos, and Italian pizza all in the same lane!!

Punjab restaurant, Neal Street, Covent Garden
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Punjab_restaurant,_Neal_Street,_Covent_Garden_01.jpg

So, by successfully rolling out immigration-friendly neoliberal policies, Western democracies kept their economic prosperity and cultural richness on an upward trajectory for decades. Migration fueled prosperity, and prosperity fueled more migration—this development cycle hummed along smoothly until about 2010-2015! Then, enter our beloved Trump Tata, storming the stage with a spicy twist that forced this Western neoliberal system to rethink all its equations!!

In this part, we’ve traced how the West’s migration-friendly policies turbocharged their prosperity and richness, and how they managed the population puzzle of declining birth rates over the past few decades. In the next part, we’ll gauge the direction of the Trump tornado, diving into the rising ethno-nationalism and cultural nationalism in the West, along with topics like the “holy land” and “fatherland” vibes! Until then, adiós...

Democracy, Demography & Destiny : Part 2

This series aims to give readers a basic understanding of the perplexing puzzles that the bizarre mathematics of population poses to democratic systems today! In the last part, we explored South Korea’s population problem. Now, in this second installment, we’ll take a stroll through the Gulf region to discuss issues tied to migration...

Part 2: The Wealthy Gulf’s Non-Citizen Residents!

We recently won the Champions Trophy! Thanks to the grace of Shri Shri Shri Jay Shah, India’s matches weren’t held in Pakistan but breezed through in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), with stadiums packed to the brim with Indian fans in Dubai. Bollywood songs echoing through the stands? We’ve been seeing this since the 2020 IPL in Dubai...

So why do big cricket tournaments, IPL auctions, and such events flock to the UAE? It’s because of the reputation it’s earned—especially Dubai—as a business hub. With an efficient administration, business-friendly laws, reasonable taxes, and strict law enforcement, these Arab Emirates have turned a desert into paradise! 

Museum of the Future (Arabic: متحف المستقبل)[1] is a building located in the Financial District of Dubai, UAE.

When rulers create a business-friendly environment, resist the temptation of oppressive taxes, and provide a safe atmosphere for people, even a harsh geographical setting can yield robust economic prosperity—the Emirates are a shining example of this! Now, if someone thinks this line is a sly dig at our esteemed Sethji and Nirmala Sitharaman aunty, well, we can’t help it—sorry, not sorry!!

Anyway, the prosperity brought by oil in the UAE meant that, despite its traditional Islamic monarchical rule, the birth rate among its citizen population started declining! Once upon a time, fertile women in the UAE averaged six kids each, but as prosperity grew, that rate dropped. Today, it’s just a tad above 2.1. 

But here’s the catch: with only a few lakh citizens (the Emirati class) in the UAE, even their earlier high fertility rate wouldn’t have been enough to sustain economic growth while battling the region’s harsh environment! However, the UAE’s monarchy foresaw the risk of ending up with too many old folks and too few working hands long ago and crafted a migration policy accordingly. They shaped laws and tax structures to match, bolstered by the solid backing of their oil wealth...

Dubai cityscape changes (1990-2005)

Thanks to these policies, since the ’90s, the UAE has been flooded with workers, white-collar professionals, traders, and entrepreneurs from abroad! As a result, between 2000 and 2010, the country’s total population surged significantly, crossing 8 million. By 2020, it hit 9 million, and as of 2025 figures, the UAE’s total population now exceeds 10 million!

The largest chunk of this workforce migrating to the UAE for jobs or business comes from India alone. Roughly more than a third of the total migrant population in the UAE hails from India. Following India, Pakistan and Bangladesh send the next biggest shares of workers to the Emirates. 

A signboard in UAE featuring English, Arabic, Urdu, Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, and Telugu.

Here’s a striking detail: since most of these migrants are men, the UAE’s overall gender ratio has skewed to over 2:1! Apart from Qatar, you’d be hard-pressed to find such a lopsided gender balance in any other country...

Now, this massive influx of manpower since 1990 has fueled tremendous economic growth in the UAE. Today, with a total population of just over 10 million, their GDP has soared to around $550 billion! Their Human Development Index (HDI), based on 2022 figures, stands at an impressive 0.937. For comparison, India’s HDI is just 0.644...

UAE Human Development Index indicators

This makes it clear that the UAE’s monarchy has successfully leveraged migration policies to build an oasis in the desert. But what exactly is the population puzzle here? Let’s dig in! As of today’s numbers, only 12% of the UAE’s population are citizens!! Read that again: if you’re wandering around the UAE and randomly meet 100 people, barely 12 of them will be citizens... So, what about the rest?

UaE's total population and estimates of the proportion of non-nationals in census years (1975; 1980; 1985; 1995; 2005 and 2010

Well, about 88% of the UAE’s population are residents, not citizens! They work there, earn there, have fun there—all true—but they have about as many civic rights as tourists visiting India get from us! Since the UAE is a monarchy, not being able to vote might be shrugged off, but even in a monarchy, there’s a huge gap between being a citizen and just a resident when it comes to political rights!

Now, someone might think, “Oh, this must only apply to poor laborers who go there temporarily!” Nope, not quite. Say you land a fat paycheck job or invest a few million Arab dollars there—the UAE might roll out the red carpet with a Golden Visa or some premium residency deal! You can live there carefree, settle with your family, and hit up Burj Khalifa for fun every day! But even then, citizenship? Not happening!!

The UAE grants citizenship under super strict criteria. Until 2021, you had a slim shot at it only if you married a local citizen, received a civic honor, or were recognized for some exceptional talent. Even after 2021 loosened things up a bit, the conditions remain pretty tough. Under the new rules, only a tiny fraction qualify for citizenship! Whether you’re a Golden Visa holder or a regular worker, you get residency, not citizenship...

In January 2021, the UAE Government approved amendments to the ‘Executive Regulation of the Citizenship and Passports Law’ (page in Arabic) allowing specific categories of foreigners, their spouses and children to acquire the Emirati nationality.

Someone might say, “Fine, maybe we don’t get it, but surely our kids will!” Nope—citizenship pathways in the UAE aren’t that simple either. In Europe or the US, many places offer naturalization or birth-right citizenship, where kids born to resident migrants can become citizens of that country. But the UAE doesn’t open that door either. Barring exceptions, only kids of citizens automatically become citizens. Kids born in the UAE to non-citizens get residency, not citizenship!!

So, you could live your whole life there—work, pay their reasonable taxes, spend, marry, have kids, settle, retire, grow old—and still, you’d just be a resident! Not a citizen!! And your kids? They’d follow in your footsteps—going to school, growing up, and working as non-citizen residents too...

This is how the UAE’s monarchy solves its population riddle! There, 88% of the population aren’t citizens. The 12% who are citizens live happily as dependents, and that’s their real political status! Even a Golden Visa holder can be booted out anytime if they don’t toe the line—the administration openly holds that power! Here in India, even a guy sleeping on the pavement can contest elections, fight the government as a citizen with rights, and no one can say, “Follow this rule, or we’ll toss you into Lanka!!” That’s the difference between being a citizen and a resident...

In this series, we’re actually exploring population questions tied to democracy. Yet, I deliberately based this second part on the UAE’s monarchical system. Why? So that, as we discuss migration as a potential solution to population issues in future parts, you’ll clearly remember the massive gap between being a citizen and a resident!

Legal migration might seem like a neat fix at first glance, but it throws up complex questions for both the migrants and the locals where migration happens. In Part 1, we grasped the birth rate issue via South Korea. In this Part 2, we’ve understood the citizen-resident divide through the UAE! So now, we’re ready to tackle migration head-on, and for that, we’ll head to the land of the fair-skinned in the next part! Until then, في أمان الله (Stay safe) 

Democracy, Demography & Destiny : Part 1

Democracy and population aren’t new concepts to India! Democracy has been thriving here for almost three-quarters of a century, while in terms of population, we’ve made such “stellar progress” that we’ve now clinched the number one spot globally! The goal of this series is to give readers a basic introduction to the complex conundrums that the bizarre arithmetic of population has thrown at democratic systems today! The main focus of this series will revolve around India’s upcoming delimitation, the ongoing North-South tussle related to it, its impact on Maharashtra, the BIMARU states being sustained by the tax revenues of progressive states, and similar issues.

But since this is a global question, before diving into India’s mess, I thought we should first get a little more acquainted with the topic. So, in this series, we’ll take a detour through places like Korea and the Gulf before tackling India’s problems head-on! With that, here’s the first installment of this series...

Caste Weaponization, Maharashtra Politics & Public Intellectuals

Maharashtra's politics has fallen to a level where even basic criminal law procedure is now contested to stand off between two groups, on the basis of weaponized caste identities. The "ours vs theirs" game now extends beyond victim & accused, to determine which officers should investigate a particular criminal case.

If you don't understand the gravity of the situation, have a look at some insta reels tagged with particular hashtags relevant to any crime with high TRP. This is a media consumed by majority of the Below30 population in the state & it's full of venomous caste skirmishes. This is a horrible state of affairs & the political class appears to be the main culprit in this. However, we should never allow the established public intellectuals to escape their fair share of blame in this! 

Intellectuals in Maharashtra, saving for rare exceptions, have behaved like the cheerleaders of various political leaders for last couple of decades. Take any intellectual who gets coverage in the media. Whether they are on a payroll of such politicians or whether they behave like this due to their organically neutered minds is, however, a separate debate. 

When certain heavyweights from MH politics were busy brewing the venom of weaponized caste identities, the public intellectuals of Maharashtra were frolicking around them for either for cheap monetary favours or a cheaper commodity named political validation! 

The crumbling social fabric of MH you see today, is the direct outcome of "those with voice" behaving worse than the juvenile fan bases of Virat Kohli, KPop & Salman Khan! They actively cheered the "shrewd" politicians for injecting the nasty doses of caste weaponization in the veins of Maharashtra... 

Never forget, never forgive!