They turned the news into a Funny or Die video. They cooked up a romcom between PM Modi and Giorgia Meloni. And they fought the police with Lana del Rey memes. Our writer observes the Cockroach party\u2019s bold new strategy<\/p>\n\n
I\u2019ve spent 16 years doing standup in India, 10 of them under prime minister Narendra Modi\u2019s government. I\u2019ve learned \u2013 especially at corporate events, private shows and turns at various associations, universities and business schools among the English-speaking urban elite \u2013 that people are most thrilled when politics doesn\u2019t come up, as if it doesn\u2019t exist. I\u2019m often told: \u201cAnuvab, you can joke about anything \u2013 just don\u2019t mention any specific names, places, incidents or events.\u201d<\/p>\n
You might read that and think I live in some humourless, semi-monarchic stasis. That isn\u2019t true either. Many comedians and influencers joke about the government. Some get into trouble and some don\u2019t, the overall assessment being that it is not worth the risk. In India, whatever is true, the opposite is often true as well.<\/p>\n
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