This move by the comedian-turned-politician is seen as a bold and unconventional challenge to the incumbent Prime Minister, who has held the Varanasi seat since 2014.
Shyam Rangeela, a comedian known for his impersonations of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has announced that he will contest the Lok Sabha elections against PM Modi in the Varanasi constituency.
Rangeela, who gained popularity for his uncanny ability to mimic the Prime Minister’s mannerisms and speech, has decided to take his political satire to the next level by directly challenging Modi in the upcoming elections.
This move by the comedian-turned-politician is seen as a bold and unconventional challenge to the incumbent Prime Minister, who has held the Varanasi seat since 2014.
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Rangeela’s decision to enter the political arena is likely to add an element of drama to the high-stakes electoral battle in Varanasi, which is considered a stronghold of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
वाराणसी मैं आ रहा हूँ…#ShyamRangeelaForVaranasi pic.twitter.com/8BOFx4nnjn
— Shyam Rangeela (@ShyamRangeela) May 1, 2024
In 2017, Shyam Rangeela’s flawless impersonations of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the popular television show The Great Indian Laughter Challenge catapulted him to fame. His videos mimicking the Prime Minister’s mannerisms and speech patterns went viral on social media, making him an overnight star. Rangeela’s repertoire also included impressions of other political figures like former Congress president Rahul Gandhi.
He had joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Rajasthan in 2022.
Prior to joining AAP, Rangeela had expressed disappointment on Twitter that he was unable to appear on TV shows, suggesting that people “feared” PM Modi and questioned whether his comedic mimicry was considered a “crime”.
In 2017, he was allegedly targeted by a television channel for his Modi mimicry act. According to the reports, Rangeela was invited by the channel to perform his Modi mimicry act, but just a few days before the scheduled telecast, he was told that his part was being dropped.
The channel asked him to prepare something else, suggesting he could mimic Rahul Gandhi instead, but later asked him not to mimic any political figure.
Rangeela expressed his confusion over the channel’s decision, stating that he does not believe Prime Minister Modi has a problem with people making fun of him. However, he believes that the Prime Minister’s followers have an issue with such mimicry acts.
