The farmer protests in India is making for global headlines. Comedian and host of The Daily Show Trevor Noah attempted explaining the farmer protests that have been going on since November in a segment called, ' If You Don’t Know, Now You Know'.
In the video that lasted for more than eight minutes, he talked about how farming employs 600 million people in India, which Noah said was more than twice the population of the US. Noah even referred to Mahatma Gandhi, who led protests and movements against the British Raj in India.
Protests near the Delhi borders have caused major traffic snarls. The protesters have announced four-hour 'rail roko' or a railway blockade campaign on February 18. The farmers have been protesting against the government laws that would end the 'mandi system' or the farmer's markets, where farmers got a fair price for their crops. The farmers argue that this law benefits big corporations and weaken the MSP (minimum support price) that ensured fair prices.
Noah went on to say how farmers are very patient. In the video, he also shared a clip of BJP supporters burning effigies of pop star Rihanna and climate activist Greta Thunberg and added that Thunberg would be angered by the burning because of the carbon emissions it would generate.
The video ends with a farmer saying that the community is willing to protest for as long as four years if that's what it will take for the government to repeal the laws.
Rihanna on February 2 tweeted to more than 101 million of her followers, ' Why aren’t we talking about this?! #FarmersProtest.' Climate activist Greta Thunberg too, tweeted in solidarity with the farmers, 'We stand in solidarity with the #FarmersProtest in India,' she wrote. Veteran Hollywood actor Susan Sarandon also made known her support towards the farmers.
Former porn star Mia Khalifa tweeted in solidarity with Indian farmers and despite getting trolled with lewd comments, Khalifa said she stands by her tweet and continues to support the protests.
Following this, the Ministry of External Affairs issued a statement that read that “Before rushing to comment on such matters, we would urge that the facts be ascertained, and a proper understanding of the issues at hand be undertaken. The temptation of sensationalist social media hashtags and comments, especially when resorted to by celebrities and others, is neither accurate nor responsible.”
Post this, several Indian celebrities including Ajay Devgn and Akshay Kumar sent out similarly worded tweets, supporting the government. This drew criticism from other actors like Taapsee Pannu, film-maker Onir, actor Arjun Mathur and others. "If one tweet rattles your unity, one joke rattles your faith or one show rattles your religious belief, then it's you who has to work on strengthening your value system not become propaganda teacher' for others," Pannu wrote.
