The witty and the funny come together for an all-round laugh riot at the Capital today. Popular stand-up commediannes Neeti Palta, Rajneeesh Kapoor and Amit Tandon have been tickling the funny bone for many years, but they feel the comedy scene in India has just got hotter. They tell Deebashree Mohanty that there is much greater scope for commediannes today
Rajneeesh Kapoor
As a profession, do you find stand-up comedy to be a fulfilling oneIJ
Oh yes, immensely so. I can’t think of anything which I would rather be doing. Nothing. Nothing at all.
Do you prepare before a live show or is it all prontoIJ
Yes, there is preparation because every day brings in new possibilities. There is so much that happens in India which needs to be talked about. like if Flipkart’s mega sale happens and everyone is talking about it, then I do spend time writing my funny take on that.
Do you think it has become difficult to make people laugh nowadays. What is the reasonIJ
Who doesn’t like to laughIJ And they say that in recession and bad times, comedy booms. People prefer to go out, laugh and forget all the bad things happening all around them. But in a way, you are right. It has become a bit more difficult because a few people have become sensitive to almost everything. So it’s easy for them to take offence.
Do you think Bollywood is not helping stand-up comedy as a genre to growIJ
Bollywood and English Stand-Up Comedy have very different audience and tastes. English stand-up comedy is very new to India, roughly only 3-4 years old. Give it 10, 15 years and I am sure it will grow to a respectably big market.
Neeti Palta
You have been in the Stand Up comedy space for long. How is it shaping upIJ Is there a way to better things in IndiaIJ
I have been doing this for 5 years now and each day seems like a new one. It is growing. Comedy is the new wave in entertainment and everyone wants to ride on that wave, be it corporates, pubs, hotels, event organisers, etc. There are more avenues opening out to us. People have heard of stand-up comedy (they make less weird faces compared to what they used to make before!). Those who haven’t seen an act at least have put it on their ‘bucket’ list.
Do you think the international audience is more open to this conceptIJ
It’s just that they have been exposed to the concept longer than Indians have. But the kind of queues I saw forming at various venues hosting comedy shows during the Melbourne comedy fest was very heartening for me as a comedian.
It is a month long fest with countless shows at different times at different venues and there was an audience for all of it! I hope one day I’ll see the same kind of fervor in India too!
Are you going to foray into TV as a part of a comedy showIJ
Sure, why not. As long as it is the kind of humor that I subscribe to. It’s not very easy to find the genre that you are looking for and I am not going to accept just about anything.
Your take on the comedy shows/movies being telecast in the industry these daysIJ
They’re missing a key element…me.
Amit Tandon
What is the most irritating thing about your profession and the most likedIJ
It is irritating when people send us jokes on Whatsapp, believing we don’t write jokes, we just pick them from different places. Most liked is the laughter.
Does it irk you that comedy is not taken seriously in IndiaIJ
No. Comedy is at a nascent stage and people are still warming up to the concept. And with time, people have started taking comediannes more and more seriously. People have started respecting us. Some of them even expect us to throw tantrums now.
What is the one greatest drawback of doing stage showsIJ
I love stage shows, so I don’t see any drawbacks.
Most of the shows on TV are really not funny...
If they are running for a long time, I am sure they are funny to someone. Different genres of comedy will appeal to different people, one man’s joke could be another man’s racism for instance.
(Catch the trio perform at the Moonshine Cafe and Bar at 9:30 pm onwards today)