Kunal Kamra and Amish Tripathi lock horns over 'Sati' debate, online opinions split

Author Amish Tripathi recently got into a spat on X with comedian Kunal Kamra over a post about Bhavish Aggarwal. Kamra had slammed the Ola CEO, telling him to focus on his business instead of weighing in on historical debates. But things quickly escalated when Tripathi jumped into the conversation.

What started it all?

Tripathi had shared a podcast titled Sati - Fact or Fiction? on X, discussing the historical practice of Sati. Reacting to it, Aggarwal posted, "It’s hard to find any proof of Sati but very easy to find proof of witch burning in medieval Europe. Amazing podcast."



Kamra, who often takes digs at Aggarwal, wasn’t having it. He clapped back, "Raja Ram Mohan Roy fought against the practice of Sati; it was abolished in the year 1829. The last documented case of Sati in India was as recent as 1987. Please focus on your automobiles being immobile…"

Amish Tripathi steps in

Tripathi, who usually avoids social media debates, decided to respond. Addressing Kamra directly, he wrote, "Kunal (@kunalkamra88 ), I normally never get into twitter debates. They generate more heat than light. But since you are attacking @bhash basis a video that I made, I thought it would be appropriate for me to clarify. I would invite you to read the 1829 Sati Abolishment Act you referred to."

He then listed points from the Act and added, "Also, if I may make a suggestion... There is a value to manners, even when debating. You will find you make much greater impact if the words are polite and the tone remains calm."

Kunal Kamra then replied, "Don’t demean the struggles in our history to justify the politics of today’s ruling regime. Hinduism is regulated by practices not a book — the practice was prevalent & reformist women & men fought against it. Their struggles are well documented. The first documented case was in BC era & the last one was in 1987…"

"There’s a reason why mythology & history are two different sections in a bookstore; let’s not confuse the two," he added.

What did social media say?

Unsurprisingly, the back-and-forth sparked a frenzy online. Some sided with Tripathi, others backed Kamra, and a few just enjoyed the drama.

One person wrote, "Manners and Kamra can never be used in the same sentence." Another disagreed, saying, "I am on Kunal Kamra's side on this issue."

A third added, "We should stop taking these vulgar comedians seriously. No one cares about their opinions; most of them will do or say anything for cheap publicity."

Meanwhile, one user seemed genuinely confused by all the arguments, commenting, "Wait! Kunal claimed the Sati custom existed, Bhavish argued it didn’t, and now your post says it did. So which is it?"