Comedian Trevor Noah, host of 'The Daily Show', who received widespread criticism over his controversial joke about the escalating tensions between India and Pakistan, has defended his comments.
"It's amazing to me that my joke about the conflict in India and Pakistan trended more than the story of the actual conflict itself. Sometimes it seems like people are more offended by the jokes comedians make about an issue than the issue itself," he wrote.
A Twitter user wrote, "It's sad when someone who's had a violent past mocks war through a Bollywood stereotype. @Trevornoah 's mother was shot in the head by her husband(Trevor's stepfather).Imagine someone making fun of it with a Xhosa stereotype - the tribe his mum belongs to."
Noah responded to the tweet, saying, he uses comedy to "process pain and discomfort", and added that he made jokes about his mother being shot in the head.
"Actually if you watch my stand up you'll see that I did make jokes after my mother was shot in the head. As a comedian I use comedy to process pain and discomfort in my world but I am sorry that this hurt you and others, that's not what I was trying to do," he tweeted.
'The Daily Show' host faced backlash for the comments he made on the American satirical television show. Noah, during an episode, tried to find humour in the rising tensions between India and Pakistan.
In the video, which was shared widely on social media, Noah said that while he hopes India and Pakistan do not go to war, it would be the "most entertaining" war if they did.
He also did an impression of a soldier singing and dancing like a Bollywood star. Mocking army personnel, Noah likened their war cry to Punjabi songs.
Bollywood actor Swara Bhasker later took to Twitter to call out the comedian and told him that neither is war 'funny', nor Hindi 'gibberish.' Comedian Mallika Dua too slammed Noah over his remarks.
The comedian, however, is not new to controversy. 'The Daily Show' host recently introduced the best picture nominee 'Black Panther' at the Oscars and had some fun with the idea that people think the fictional setting of the country of Wakanda is real, reported CNN.
Noah joked about knowing the movie's main character, T'Challa, played by Chadwick Boseman and said, that growing up as a young boy in Wakanda, he would see T'Challa flying over their village, and he would remind them of a great Xhosa phrase, adding, "He says 'abelungu abazi uba ndiyaxoka' -- which means, 'In times like these, we are stronger when we fight together than when we try to fight apart.'"
However, those who know the dialogue realised Noah actually said, "White people don't know I'm lying.
(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)