New Delhi: Stand-up comedian Pulkit Mani has cancelled his scheduled shows in Noida, Lucknow and Kanpur amid the controversy over his mimicry of Prime Minister Narendra Modi during Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s “Chhatron Ki Goonj” event in Indore on 19 September.
Mani first announced the cancellation of his Noida show on Instagram, citing “unforeseen circumstances” and apologising to fans for the inconvenience.
“I regret to inform you that my Noida show has been cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances. I sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused and appreciate your understanding and support,” he said.
In a follow-up Instagram story, Mani shared that his Lucknow and Kanpur shows were also cancelled.
“Due to repeated threats from goon activists, my Lucknow and Kanpur shows are cancelled,” he wrote.
A clip of the performance was shared by the Congress Party on X, showing Mani mimicking PM Modi, with the title “My friend!! Great Harassment.” In the skit, Mani came on stage laughing and hugged Gandhi.
“My friend. How are you,” Mani asked, to which Gandhi replied, “I’m fine; how are you, Modi ji?”
“Maa ko kursi do, maa (Give Mother a chair, Mother),” Mani added while pointing towards the audience.
The skit has since been widely circulated and criticised online, with some members of the BJP demanding a formal apology from Gandhi.
Mani has been performing stand-up comedy since 2021 and is known for political satire, impersonations of public figures and observational comedy. His first half-hour stand-up special, Raw Hunny, was released on YouTube in February 2026.
Reacting to the video, Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal criticised the performance on X.
“The irony writes itself. 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,” Goyal wrote.
Union Minister Kiren Rijiju also criticised the performance.
“Congress Party has become a Party of Comedians & Jokers,” the Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs of India posted on X.
“I hadn’t imagined that a party which was in power for nearly six decades would turn into such a circus that is busy entertaining its own shrunk supporters,” he wrote.
The episode has turned Mani, a mid-tier digital comic, into the centre of national politics. But this isn’t his first brush with backlash. He has previously faced criticism over videos mocking religious figures and practices.
In one viral video, he can be heard saying, “Bhagwan, agar main tujhse kuch magu… toh main bhakt kaisa?Aur agar mujhe tujhse kuch mangna hi pade… toh tu bhagwan kaisa? Bhai, agar mandir se daan peti hata di jaye… toh naraj kaun hoga? Bhagwan ya pujari? (God, if I ask you for something… then what kind of devotee am I? And if I actually have to ask you for something… then what kind of god are you? Brother, if the donation box were removed from the temple… who would get angry? God, or the priest?)”
He has previously also made crude jokes about PM Modi and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Mani recently collaborated with Kunal Kamra on a video titled “Modiverse”, where they took a dig at Modi as well as Amit Shah.
Now, following the massive backlash and political uproar because of the Indore event, Mani took to his Instagram stories to share a cryptic meme, “Ab underground hone ka samay aa gaya hai (It’s now time to go underground)”.
(With inputs from Triya Gulati)
(Edited by Insha Jalil Waziri)