Munawar Faruqui is an Indian stand-up comedian and writer, who is known for his controversial remarks on religion and Indian politics, which often lands him in trouble.
Contents
Wiki/Biography
Munawar Faruqui was born on Tuesday, 28 January 1992 (age 30 years; as of 2022) in Junagadh, Gujarat. His full name is Munawar Iqbal Faruqui. [1]YouTube He is well versed in graphic design and art direction.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 7″
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Dark Brown
Family & Religion
Munawar belongs to a Muslim family from Junagadh.
Parents & Siblings
He has a sister named Shabana Shaikh.
Wife & Children
According to Munawar, he got married in 2017. In an episode of the reality show ‘Bigg Boss 17’ (2023), Munawar revealed that he has a son named Mikael. He added that he got divorced in 2022. [2]The Siasat Daily In April 2022, in an episode of the reality show Lock Upp, hosted by Kangana Ranaut, he talked about his wife and said that he had not lived with his wife for 1.5 years. [3]The Indian Express
Munawar Faruqui with his wife and son
Relationships/Affairs
Nazila Sitaishi
In December 2021, Munawar was reported to be in a relationship with an Indian model named Nazila Sitaishi. [4]India Today
Munawar Faruqui and Nazila Sitaishi
Rumours of their breakup emerged in 2022, but they later refuted them. In an episode of Bigg Boss 17, Munawar Faruqui mentioned that he was in a relationship with someone, but he did not disclose the name. According to him, he had been dating this person for two years. [5]The Siasat Daily Munawar and Nazila ended their relationship in 2023. On 18 December 2023, Nazila took to social media to clarify that she had no association with Munawar after actor Ayesha Khan alleged on Bigg Boss 17 that he double-dated her. [6]India Today
Ayesha Khan
Allegedly, Munawar was once in a relationship with Ayesha Khan, an actor and model. In 2023, Ayesha claimed that Munawar double-dated her. According to Ayesha, Munawar had told her that he had broken up with Nazila, but he was still talking to her. Munawar, however, later in an episode said that he was not over Nazila and wanted to make things right.
Ayesha Khan
Before Ayesha’s entry into the show, a teaser was released by Bigg Boss 17 in which she could be heard saying,
You told me you have broken up with Nazila but you have been talking about your relationship with her so loudly on the show. You told me you love me and want to spend time with me. You told me you love me and want to spend quality time with me. And all this while you were begging her to say… isko two timing nai bole. Toh main kaise aaye picture mein. Sirf mere aur uski baat hoti na toh main shayad yeh conversation sun lete. There were other women involved.
Ayesha further said,
He asked me out. While we were not committed, things were happening between us. Now he is lying on national television about his dating life. I need to confront him. He has broken my trust. He kept me hooked while he was involved with other women.”
Later in an episode of Bigg Boss 17, Munawar expressed his wish to be in a relationship with Ayesha. He asked if her family would accept him once they resolved their issues. Soon after the episode was aired, several media outlets reported that they were back in a relationship. [7]The Siasat Daily
Its almost official#AyeshaKhan and #MunawarFaruqui in relationship on #BiggBoss17
— The Khabri (@TheKhabriTweets) December 27, 2023
🚨 Tonight’s Episode – Munawar Faruqui indirectly proposes to Ayesha Khan
Munawar expresses his wish to be with Ayesha in a romantic relationship. Munawar asks if Ayesha's family will agree to their union if they sort out their differences. He further inquires if they can have a…
— #BiggBoss_Tak👁 (@BiggBoss_Tak) December 27, 2023
Career
Stand-up Comedy
Munawar is a Mumbai-based stand-up comedian. His content is mostly political in nature, and he is usually seen criticizing the Narendra Modi Government. Here is a video in which he is talking about the NRC (National Register of Citizens) and the Delhi riots that happened during the anti-CAA protests in 2020.
Faruqui is a popular stand-up comic, and he toured almost all over India with his stand-up special “Dongri To Nowhere” in 2019.
Apart from being a stand-up comic, he is also a singer and rapper. Munawar released his debut rap song ‘Jawab’ during the COVID-19 lockdown.
His videos combined have more than 23 million views on YouTube. Faruqui has around 535k subscribers on his YouTube channel.
Reality Show
On 8 May 2022, Munawar Faruqui was declared the winner of the reality show Lock Upp hosted by Kangana Ranaut. Payal Rohatgi was the first runner-up, while Anjali Arora was the second runner-up of the show. Along with the winning trophy, Faruqui took home Rs. 20 lakh cash prize and a brand new car. During the show, Faruqui revealed many things about his past, be it his divorce, his mother’s suicide, and being sexually assaulted as a child.
Munawar Faruqui after winning the first season of Lock Upp
Munawar Faruqui appeared as a contestant in the reality show ‘Bigg Boss 17’ in 2023. The show aired on Colors TV.
Munawar Faruqui in the reality show ‘Bigg Boss 17’ (2023)
He was announced as the winner of the show on 28 January 2024; he received a cheque of Rs. 50 lakh and a Hyundai Creta.
Munawar Faruqui, along with Salman Khan, after winning the show ‘Bigg Boss 17’
Awards
- Winner (2018): Comic Kaun 4.0 by Pizza Burst
Munawar Faruqui winning Comic Kaun
- Winner (2018): Open Mic at the Synergy Fest
Munawar Faruqui winning an Open Mic
Controversies
- In April 2020, Munawar landed into a controversy after his YouTube video went viral in which he was seen making fun of Hindu deities Ram and Sita, and the 2002 Godhra massacre. In the video, he referred to the massacre as a fictional film, directed by Amit Shah and produced by the RSS. A complaint was filed against him with the Mumbai police by Hindutva activist and former Shiv Sena member Ramesh Solanki.
Filed online complaint with @MumbaiPolice against hate monger @FaruquiMunawar
I request Mumbai Police to file FIR n take strict against Munavar for mocking Sri Ram and Sita Maata@CyberDost @MahaCyber1 @ippatel @TajinderBagga @Aabhas24 @ShefVaidya @AskAnshul @MODIfiedVikas @ pic.twitter.com/52O8AkJP4R— Ramesh Solanki🇮🇳 (@Rajput_Ramesh) April 14, 2020
Soon, he faced a serious backlash on Twitter as thousands of netizens flooded Twitter with the hashtag that read “#ArrestMunawarFaruqui.” He later apologised for unintentionally hurting the religious sentiments of people.
You call this stand up comedy @FaruquiMunawar ? Can you make fun and use such words about other religion and God including your own ? You are disgusting. @MumbaiPolice needs to take action against this nonsense. @Dev_Fadnavis @DevangVDave @Rajput_Ramesh https://t.co/mq6FGL3pUY
— Punit Agarwal 🇮🇳 (@Punitspeaks) April 15, 2020
- On 1 January 2020, Munawar, along with four other comedians, was arrested during his show in Indore for allegedly passing indecent remarks against Hindu deities and mocking Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The complaint was filed by Eklavya Singh Gaur, the chief of Hindutva group Hind Rakshak Sangathanson and the son of local BJP MLA Malini Singh Gaur. While talking to reporters, Gaur said,
When I heard about Munawar’s show, I bought a ticket and went to see it. As expected, he was insulting Hindu deities and also mocked Home Minister Amit Shah by dragging his name with Godhra riots. Such objectionable talks were going on during the comedy show. We made a video of them and stopped the show by taking the audience out of the cafe. Then we caught the comedians and organisers of the show and took them to Tukoganj police station.”
After a couple of days, a video went viral of an altercation between Gaur and Munawar in which Gaur was seen accusing Munawar of hurting religious sentiments of Hindus by making jokes on Hindu Gods while Munawar was calmy trying to explain that no such thing was happening. Later, Kamlesh Sharma, the Inspector of Tukaganj Police station told The Indian Express that there was no video evidence to back the allegations against him of insulting Hindu deities and Union Minister Amit Shah. Many prominent comedians including Varun Grover, Vir Das, and Rohan Joshi came up in Munawar’s support and criticised his arrest.
You can't stop jokes and laughter. Not because comedians are performing it, but because people need to laugh. Harder you try, the more you're going to be laughed at, now, and by history.
Anyone who has ever tried to control humour, now has a category of jokes devoted to them.
— Vir Das (@thevirdas) January 3, 2021
I'm just going to leave this here. pic.twitter.com/C8eqqDzPya
— Vir Das (@thevirdas) January 3, 2021
Even though no incriminating evidence was found against Munawar, his bail plea was rejected for the third time by the Madhya Pradesh High Court on the grounds that since the investigation is still underway, there is a possibility that more evidence might be brought to light.
- On 28 November 2021, he hinted that he may quit stand-up comedy, a day after his scheduled show was cancelled in Bengaluru. Reportedly, the comedian was advised by the police to call it off due to possible law and order problems. After several right-wing groups opposed Faruqui’s show citing that his show may disturb communal harmony and said that Faruqui has a habit of making ‘unacceptable’ jokes on Hindu gods, Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2020, and Godhra massacre of karsevaks.’ [8]Hindustan Times A letter issued by Hindu Janjagruti Samiti, a right-wing group, to Bengaluru police commissioner Kamal Pant read,
Allowing Munawar Faruqui, who hurts religious sentiments of Hindus, is providing an opportunity for him to repeat those crimes…. should such a programme that disturbs the communal harmony be allowed when the memories of DJ Halli riots are still fresh?”
- In December 2021, he was dropped from an upcoming three-day comedy show to be held in Gurugram after a complaint was filed against him by the BJP Haryana unit’s IT department head. In his complaint, Arun Yadav, IT department head, Haryana BJP, accused Mr. Faruqui of insulting Hindu deities. [9]The Hindu He said,
His activities have offended my Hindu faith. This is intentionally done to incite communal disharmony.”
Bike Collection
He owns a KTM RC 200.
Salary
Reportedly, he earns Rs. 1.5 lakh per comedy show. [10]Instagram In October 2023, Munawar was reported to be one of the highest-paid contestants of the show ‘Bigg Boss 17.’ He reportedly received around Rs. 7-8 lakh per week for the show. [11]Hindustan
Net Worth
According to an article published in October 2023, Munawar Faruqui’s net worth was estimated to be around Rs. 2 crores. [12]Hindustan
Facts/Trivia
- In the video of his altercation with Eklavya Singh Gaur, which was related to insulting Hindu deities by Munawar, he mentioned that his house was burnt down during the 2002 Gujarat riots.
- His food preference is non vegetarian.
- He occasionally likes to smoke hookah.
- In January 2024, actor Anjali Arora, who appeared as a contestant along with Munawar in the reality show Lock Upp in 2022, accused Munawar of being a “player.” While talking about him, in an interview, she said that he knows how to play with words and girls very well. [13]The Times of India When the interviewer asked for the reason behind her claims, she said,
Kyunki unhone kitni ladkiyon ki zindagi se… I don’t know kitni ladkiyon ki Abhi sacchayi bahar aana Baaki hai.”
References
