If PM tells me what I am doing is wrong, I will feel it, trolls can't convince me: Munawar Faruqui
Comedian says he is not afraid to die, believes one day hate will end
New Delhi: Indian stand-up comedian Munawar Faruqui who is facing the ire of right-wing social media users and fringe group members, in a candid interview with journalist Barkha Dutt said the day when the Prime Minister of the country will tell him he is wrong, that when he will really feel he is wrong.
Speaking in an interview for The Mojo Story of Barkha Dutt, Faruqui spoke about trolls, social media hate life after jail, where he spent 30 days allegedly for cracking a joke that hurt the sentiments of Hindus. The case was infamously touted after the court proceedings that it was a case of “joke that was never cracked”.
Faruqui’s recent comic shows were canceled in Mumbai and Gujarat after fringe groups issued threats to Faruqui and the organisers of the show of consequence if the show was proceeded ahead with. Several hashtags and social media campaigns were also organised by the right-wing users who criticized the comedian and called for his boycott.
Speaking to Barkha Dutt, Faruqui stated that it began with threatening phone calls after which he changed his mobile number.
“They then started trolling me on social media. And when I open their profile, I am disappointed. These are teenagers who have posted pictures in heroic poses in their display pictures but their feeds are full of hate. These people are telling me what I am doing is wrong which is not understandable. For me, when the Prime Minister of the country will tell me that what I am doing in wrong, that’s when I will feel it. Because the person telling me that I am wrong should be of some stature. These random people cannot tell me what I am doing is wrong,” he said.
“The political class has a different style of threatening. They will tell me they won’t allow my shows. I want to invite them to my shows, I want to tell them to leave the hate behind and come join us at the auditorium of the show and have a joyful session, he added”.
When asked if he was angry with the right-wing activists, Faruqui said “I am not angry. I am not afraid. I am not afraid to die. I think about what is the worst they can do to me? They will kill me? But death is the ultimate truth of life. We are leaving in a time of pandemics, there is death everywhere, we are not sure what is going to happen next moment. So why be afraid to die? If I have to die, I will die anywhere and anyhow, and if I am not destined to die today, nobody can kill me.”
“If the Supreme Court is not stopping me to conduct my shows, why are these people stopping me? For something of the past and for something which has been clarified in the courts. So yes, comedy is everything for me and right now my state of mind is messed up,” he further added.
Faruqui went on to say that he believes things will get better and the hate and hatemongers will understand things better.
“I am optimistic. I believe things will get better with time. Like we all were bad at some point in our lives. I might have been a bully in my childhood and then something might have happened that changed me. Made me believe that ok this is not what I should be doing. So I think all the right-wingers will also get that kind of enlightenment in the end. They will eventually love me one day,” a hopeful Faruqui can be seen telling Barkha in a small clip of video shared by the latter on her Twitter.
Right wing groups and their threats of violence continue to stall the shows of @munawar0018 . Yet he speaks gently, softly "One day their hate will end". The comic on life after jail and bail on @themojostory : https://t.co/Ltd72ZOMEl pic.twitter.com/YAVqkOC3xt
— barkha dutt (@BDUTT) November 10, 2021
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
