Stand-up comedian Abijit Ganguly draws from his own experiences for his acts. After his recent show at IHC, he spoke to Eshita Bhargava about taking inspiration from Jaspal Bhatti and his desire to host a show on the lines of John Oliver’s last Week Tonight
It didn’t look like a planned act at all. He abruptly left his seat and made his way out of the audience’s section to reach the stage. He began on a cliched note, trying to sound funny as he asked the members of the audience “are you married or happyIJ” The tried and tested trick worked to make a few laugh and from thereon Abijit Ganguly was on a roll. The stand-up comic narrated tragedies of his life and held the audience captive for a couple of hours with his wisecracks. He narrated an “unresolved problem” of most Bengali guys who come to Delhi with high hopes but here they struggle to establish their identity. Bengali-Punjabi tussle, alcoholic friends, college and love life were other topics that he spoke of during his act.
As soon as he was done with making people laugh, we caught up with Ganguly backstage. He told us that comedy is all about social satire and cannot be kept away from reality and therefore he picks up instances from his life to share on stage so that the audience can relate to them. We found out that he was once a business analyst who decided to give up his monotonous, though well-paying, job to do stand-up comedy. “Pursuing passion is far more important than just earning money,” he said. He started his career after watching a gig by Abhish Mathew, his mention reminds us of the (un)famous AIB Roast show. “If you don’t like something then don’t watch it, nobody is forcing you. Comedians should know where to draw a line,” said Ganguly.
Ganguly takes inspiration from Jaspal Bhatti and says that he was one of the best comedians in India. “He has always inspired me and taught me to go on. He gave me courage to leave behind my job and follow my heart. I have learnt that one must follow his passion but to be successful one should play smart and it is important to keep a check on your pocket while venturing into an unchartered territory. Keep exploring and believe in yourself,” he said. His dream project is to host a show like John Oliver’s last Week Tonight.
photo Sanjeev Kumar