Zomato, Swiggy, Amazon, Flipkart, Blinkit, Zepto named in Kunal Kamra’s rap video on gig worker’s rights

‘Rating Nahi Haq Chahiye’ takes the activism route for gig workers.

“Insaan hai hum, gulam nahi” rails a five-minute-long rap video against the likes of Zomato, Flipkart, Swiggy, Amazon, Ola, Uber, Urban Company, and more such companies.

This new work from stand-up comic Kunal Kamra bemoans the lack of security for the gig workers (delivery personnel) on whose shoulders these companies have built their fortunes. 

Rating Nahi Haq Chahiye (Want rights, not ratings) belts out the life of the average gig worker and the troubles they face every single day. 

Music and activism have always gone hand in hand and this rap video is the latest example; hard-hitting lyrics coupled with simple yet catchy beats make for a decent hook, while the lyrics displayed in the video ensure viewers remember them for a long time.

In 2015, rapper Sofia Ashraf's video against FMCG major Hindustan Unilever (HUL) highlighting the company's mercury contamination in Kodaikanal went viral, and it prompted the company to respond.

“Mujhe chahiye pension, na ki future ki koi tension. Mujhe chahiye security, mujhe chahiye chutti…” 

The video, for starters, illustrates how gig workers enjoy zero benefits such as the lack of health insurance, and instead see themselves hustling all day for ratings stuck in an increasingly dystopian gamified work life.

Secondly, it calls out the technology-cum-service companies for being hailed as superstars while underpaying their gig workers. It also calls them out for only making ads and stealing code from American companies. “Tu bas ADD banata, American company ke code churata.”

Lastly, the consumers too are blamed for their lack of empathy towards the challenges faced by delivery personnel, who often encounter difficulties entering apartment societies, navigating lengthy flights of stairs due to a lack of elevators, and not even receiving a simple offer of a glass of water.

And all this while, the music video is splashed with news clippings of the hardships gig workers face.

2023 saw gig workers go on protest marches against the likes of Blinkit after it made changes to their pay structures, Urban Company’s gig workers rallied against the company after layoffs and blocked IDs. 

Kerala in 2022 saw these workers protest against Swiggy demanding a revision of the minimum delivery remuneration while Amazon workers in Mumbai protested for a minimum wage.

The last bit of the video names the companies whose gulam gig workers are not. They are Swiggy, Zomato, Dunzo, Urban Company, Uber founder, Ola founder, Blinkit, Rapido, Amazon, Flipkart, PharmEasy, Myntra, bigbasket, Porter, and Zepto.