Stand-up comedian Gaurav Gupta is no stranger to punchy one-liners, but one recent show gave him a whole new kind of spotlight. During a live set on his US-Canada tour, a brief yet electric moment went viral—Gupta asking a Pakistani fan to recite the Hanuman Chalisa. The crowd’s reaction? Loud, cheeky, and very telling.
As the man in the audience revealed he was from Pakistan, the crowd immediately broke into chants of “Sindoor”—a not-so-subtle nod to India’s recent Operation Sindoor, the military response to the Pahalgam terror attack.
The Interaction That Went Viral
In the now-viral video, shared by Gaurav Gupta himself on Instagram, the moment plays out with layered tension and humor. Upon hearing the fan’s nationality, Gaurav laughs and quickly addresses the crowd:
“Behave!” he says with mock sternness. Then, turning to the man:
“Chalo, Hanuman Chalisa padho. Padho, padho!”
The room bursts into laughter. The fan? He laughs too.
What could’ve gone sideways turned into shared amusement—part satire, part cultural commentary.
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The exchange didn’t stop there. Gupta followed up with another jab:
“Toh tumhe samajh nahi aata, nahi milega tumhe? Itne saalon se keh rahe hain nahi milega, nahi milega, phir aa jaate ho tum.”
It was a bold reference to Kashmir, and the crowd roared.
But then came the balance. “Brother, you have guts to come here,” Gupta said. “He thought artists were banned, but audience is still allowed!”
It was the kind of line that makes you laugh first—and then think.
For many Indians, it felt like a mic-drop moment. For others, it sparked a conversation: Where’s the line between satire and sensitivity? Between humour and hurt?
But one thing’s clear: Gaurav Gupta didn’t just tell a joke. He captured the room—and the mood of the moment.
