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Another week, another online outrage. As we watch YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia issue multiple apologies while facing death threats and police complaints for an admittedly tasteless joke on Samay Raina's show "India's Got Latent," I find myself wondering: are we directing our collective anger at the right issues?

If you have not been under a rock, you know that Ranveer Allahbadia, aka BeerBiceps, made an inappropriate comment about parents and sex during a comedy show. The backlash has been swift and severe - multiple police complaints filed, death threats pouring in, and people reportedly invading his mother's clinic posing as patients. Samay Raina has deleted all 18 episodes of his wildly successful show, saying "it was too much to handle."

The Supreme Court itself expressed strong disapproval, asking, "If this is not obscenity then what is?" and "What is the parameter of obscenity?" Fair questions, but they lead to others worth considering.

In general, the jokes on the show "India's Got Latent" has often been misogynistic. Only seven out of forty-nine judges on Raina's show have been women, in effect shaping the entire tenor of the humor. 

When Ranveer Allahbadia was once asked about his entirely male crew, his response – "launda energy" – speaks volumes about the boys' club mentality that permeates much of our comedy landscape.

This isn’t the first time Allahbadia has sparked outrage. Just last year, he asked advocate Sai Deepak to name three people who should leave India—an absurd question that led to backlash. But the YouTube video wasn’t taken down. Fast forward to April 2024, when he spread unverified claims about a village in Kerala enforcing Islamic law. Did we see the same outrage then? Nope. 

Content creators have been getting away with a lot of things. 

For instance, 

The Andrew Tate Phenomenon: Teenagers across India idolise an accused sex trafficker who promotes misogyny and violence. Fourteen-year-old Yash from Delhi told Decode that he admires Tate because "he has full control of his life" - a dangerous role model who uses recruitment techniques similar to extremist groups. Read the story here.

Exploitation of Vulnerable People: Remember how content creators turned 16-year-old Monalisa, a garland seller at Kumbh, into viral fodder until she was chased away from her livelihood? 

Scam Promotion: When influencers like Elvish Yadav and Abhishek Malhan promoted the Hibox app, promising "mystery boxes" worth lakhs, thousands of fans were defrauded. Delhi Police received over 127 complaints, and Rs. 18 crore was seized. Read the story.

Trauma Exploitation: The Kolkata doctor's rape and murder became clickbait for content creators, with influencers posting videos dressed as the victim, collecting millions of views while openly flouting laws against revealing sexual assault victims' identities. Read the story. 

The Complex Question

The New York Times once invited students above 13 years old to weigh in on whether some topics should be off limits to comedy. The responses were widely varied. 

But one thing we know is that humor has always pushed boundaries. As Freud once noted, jokes tell "the secrets about ourselves to ourselves and the world that we do not necessarily want to tell." Throughout history, comedy has served as both an escape valve and a mirror for society.

The AIB roast from 2014 faced similar backlash, yet it raised Rs. 40 lakh for charity while no audience member complained. As one legal expert noted, "There is no general right to take offence at the contents of another person's speech in a private environment."

Raina's show has repeatedly faced criticism for enabling problematic humor. In one notorious episode, a comedian named Santosh Patra made crude jokes about people with disabilities - and instead of calling him out, the panel applauded. In another episode, the panel casually asked a female contestant about her "body count," which sparked outrage online. 

So, where do we go from here?

The outrage economy thrives on knee-jerk reactions and mob mentality. Rather than thoughtful critique, we jump straight to calls for cancellation, boycotts, and even violence. This doesn't lead to better content or healthier discourse - it just creates fear and conformity.

Shouldn’t we be saving our strongest outrage for those who actively cause harm - the scammers, exploiters, and hate-mongers? Shouldn’t we prioritise protecting the vulnerable over punishing tasteless jokes? 

And perhaps, most importantly, let's remember that we don't need to agree on everything to coexist. Some content isn't for everyone, and that's okay. The off button exists for a reason.

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