Meet the comedian challenging India’s Prime Minister in Varanasi

By Asmita Pant Published May 15, 2024

29-year-old Shyam Rangeela, who hails from Hanumangarh in Rajasthan, shot to fame for his hilarious mimicry of Narendra Modi. Now, he’s fighting the country’s Prime Minister for the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat.

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Rangeela, who has 964,000 followers on YouTube, has disclosed assets worth ₹16.5 lakh, of which ₹4 lakh worth of assets are immovable.

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Shyam Rangeela has studied up to class 12 and learnt animation for three years in Jaipur.

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This is not Rangeela’s first foray into politics. He joined the Aam Aadmi Party in May 2022 but he’s standing for the 2024 Lok Sabha election as an independent candidate in Varanasi.

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Rangeela’s election affidavit said that his income was ₹4,99,530 for the financial year ending March 2023.

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Ajay Rai from the Indian National Congress and Syed Niyaz Ali of the Bahujan Samaj Party are the other candidates standing against Modi.

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