“It almost feels like hate has become the price of citizenship in this country,” says comedian Daniel Fernandes in a 25-minute stand-up video uploaded two weeks ago.
On June 4, 2025, Fernandes revealed on X (formerly Twitter) that he had received a legal notice from two Supreme Court lawyers, demanding he take down his recent stand-up video. The notice refers to segments in the performance related to the recent attack in Kashmir and another unrelated clip. He has been given a deadline until June 3 to remove the video or face legal proceedings.
The notice alleges that Fernandes’ stand-up and accompanying post on X “mock cultural values and trivialise the Pahalgam attack, causing widespread hurt.”
In response to the legal notice, Fernandes wrote, “As a comedian and citizen of India, I strongly believe in the constitutional right to freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(1)(a). The content in question is satire, a long-recognised and protected form of commentary in democratic societies.”
He further explained that stand-up comedy often relies on exaggeration and hyperbole, and that any examination of such material should consider the context within which these words are spoken.
The notice highlighted six specific statements made by Fernandes in his stand-up routine about the Pahalgam attack, along with another unrelated statement. These included his remarks on the Home Minister, criticisms of mainstream media, an alleged call for a ‘nuclear war,’ the absence of Prime Minister Modi following the attack, and references to an incident where the foreign secretary and his family were attacked after India declared a ceasefire.
In his stand-up set, Fernandes addressed the rise in communal hate following the Pahalgam attack, sharply criticising the government’s role in deepening divisions across the country.
“Who do the terrorists think they are, the Government? If they wanted to divide the country, stand for elections — why waste bullets?” he asked during the performance, mocking what he called the state’s complacency towards escalating communal hatred.
“India has a surplus of hate right now — so much that we can export it to countries like Norway and Finland,” he added, highlighting what he sees as a disturbing normalisation of hate in everyday discourse.
However, the legal notice he received contends that such remarks are deeply offensive, especially in the context of what it refers to as the “Pahalgam tragedy.” It argues that the comments risk tarnishing India’s image on the global stage and could cause distress to Indian citizens.
The notice, dated May 29, 2025, was sent by Advocate Makarand Adkar and Advocate Amita Sachdeva, who describe themselves as “concerned citizens of India.” They accused Fernandes of mocking the nation’s cultural values and called on him to remove the video immediately. The notice cites specific segments of the performance and claims the content has caused “widespread hurt,” especially in light of the recent attack.
One of the statements highlighted in the legal notice from Fernandes’s show reads, “Let’s go nuclear, right? Let’s turn both our countries into a toxic wasteland.” The notice objects to this remark, arguing that it trivialises the Kashmir conflict and the Pahalgam attack, “offending religious communities and disrespecting the 26 victims.”
In his response, Fernandes clarified that this comment was intended as absurdist satire, employing dystopian exaggeration to critique the futility of warmongering. He explained, “The idea that only mutants would survive a nuclear war is a critique of escalation, not a joke at the expense of the victims.”
Further, Fernandes condemned attempts by some to turn Kashmir into a Palestine-like conflict. He sarcastically added, “Let’s all die in the nuclear war; the mutants, who will survive, who are neither Hindu nor Muslim, will solve the Kashmir issue.”
The notice also raised objections to Fernandes’s use of the phrase “f country,”** stating that it disrespects deeply held cultural values such as Matru Devo Bhava, Pitru Devo Bhava, and Bharat Mata.
Additionally, Fernandes’s criticism of Arnab Goswami, where he remarked, “We live in a world where truth can be whatever you want to ask Arnab,” was flagged in the notice as defamatory.
