Comedian Vir Das has landed himself in hot waters after offending the transgender community for making a tasteless joke in the fifth episode of his #TenonTen series. Vir received immense backlash for poking fun at gender pronouns in particular.
In the episode, the artist can be heard saying, “I am not because Trans people have the courage to discard an organ if it isn't working properly. For them, or a man who used to be a woman and the kid is like... it just means that your kids will have a longer chapter in school when they learn pronouns.”
After falling prey to ample criticism, Vir accepted his mistake and owned up to the fact that his joke was not funny from any angle. In the statement issued online, he thanked a person named Amaan from the queer community for calling him out. The comedian wrote, “I did a joke in my new episode, that my friends in the trans community felt hurt by. I see why. My intent at the moment was to say trans people have the courage the government never ever could and it was set up wrong and uninformed.”
He continued, “I messed up. It had the opposite effect and trivialised your struggle. Articulating my intent effectively is my responsibility, not yours. I got that joke wrong. Plain and simple. No buts.” Vir then posted a screenshot of the message Amaan had sent to him. He had written, “Hey Vir. I’ve been a big fan of your comedy and your work for a long time now. I’m a queer individual who identifies as non-binary. I see your reaction to the calling out of your mistakes and I feel like someone has to call you in, instead.”
Amaan’s note added, “When you feel like you’re being attacked, it’s very easy to get defensive. And reactionary. You of all people know punching up is how comedy works, and yet you chose to punch down, if only as a setup. I hope you understand. – A slightly hurt fan, Amaan.”
Responding to the message, Vir penned, “Amaan I hope it's alright that I am replying to you. You’re correct about the joke, and I’m so sorry it made you feel hurt.” He continued, “Sometimes a lot of people are upset because the joke really worked, sometimes because the joke doesn’t. My audience understands comedy, they can take a joke. So, when they talk to me, I listen. I’d like to be an artist who unabashedly deliberately uncomfortably pushes the line every single day and never stops acknowledging his audience, always using their voice as his guide.”
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