UP shows of comedian who mimicked PM Modi at Rahul Gandhi event cancelled

Three shows of comedian Pulkit Mani in Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled Uttar Pradesh have been cancelled after he mimicked Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s event in Madhya Pradesh on Saturday.

Mani said on social media that his show in Noida had been cancelled because of “unforeseen circumstances”. Hours later, he said that his events in Kanpur and Lucknow had also been cancelled because of “repeated threats from goon activists”.

It was unclear whether Mani had called off the shows or if the venues had cancelled them.

Mani performed at Gandhi’s student event in Indore on Saturday, where the comedian appeared to mimic Modi’s interactions with foreign leaders and his use of the phrase “my friend”.

Mani did not name the prime minister during the skit, but Gandhi, while hugging the comedian, asked, “How are you, Modi ji?”

The video of Mani’s performance widely shared online triggered a row, with several BJP leaders criticising Gandhi for platforming the comedian.

Union Minister Piyush Goyal described it as “cheap” political theatre.

“The irony writes itself,” Goyal said on social media. “The need to come on stage every now and then just to drag Prime Minister Modi ji’s name into cheap political theatre never fails to amaze me.”

On March 18, a parody video by Mani satirising Modi’s interactions...

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