Actor Kunal Kapoor has criticised Elon Musk amid the controversy surrounding Starlink’s proposed entry into India, accusing influential Western technology billionaires of adopting a “saviour complex” when their plans encounter resistance from local institutions.
In a strongly worded social media post, Kunal drew parallels between Musk’s past controversies in Thailand and Brazil and the debate over Starlink’s efforts to enter the Indian market. He argued that some powerful technology entrepreneurs present themselves as bringing progress but react aggressively when their proposals are challenged.
“Watching Elon Musk this week has been a fascinating character study in the saviour complex of Western tech billionaires. They arrive in your country selling you the future. Welcome them, and you’re a country that wants progress. Make them wait, and suddenly your people are victims who need rescuing from their own institutions by the chosen one,” Kunal wrote.
The actor referred to the 2018 rescue operation in Thailand, when 12 young football players and their coach became trapped inside the Tham Luang cave complex. Musk had proposed a mini-submarine to help rescue the group, but the device was not used. British diver Vernon Unsworth, who participated in the operation, criticised the proposal as impractical.
Musk subsequently attacked Unsworth on social media, calling him the “pedo guy”, a remark that drew widespread criticism.
Recalling the episode, Kunal wrote: “It’s a pattern. When Thai rescuers didn’t use the mini-submarine Musk sent for the trapped boys, and diver Vernon Unsworth called the idea impractical, Musk attacked him as the ‘pedo guy.’”
Kunal also cited Musk’s dispute with Brazil’s Supreme Court over court orders concerning X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
In 2024, X was suspended in Brazil after the platform failed to comply with court orders, including requirements related to legal representation. Musk publicly criticised the court and the judge involved in the dispute.
“When Brazil’s Supreme Court ordered X to comply with its rulings, Musk called the judge a ‘dictator.’ The script rarely changes. Only the country does,” Kunal wrote.
Expanding on his criticism, the actor described what he sees as a colonial attitude among some Western technology leaders, arguing that it can involve assuming the role of a country’s saviour rather than respecting its institutions.
“The colonial mindset isn’t always about wanting to rule a country. Sometimes it’s the assumption that you arrive as its saviour, and if the country doesn’t immediately recognise you as one, something must be wrong with the country,” he added.
Kunal’s comments come amid the debate over Starlink’s proposed entry into India. The satellite internet service, operated by Musk’s SpaceX, has been seeking regulatory approvals to launch commercial services in the country.
Musk has also alleged that powerful business interests in India are attempting to block Starlink’s entry to protect their market positions, adding another dimension to the debate over competition and regulation in the country’s telecommunications sector.