Azeem Banatwalla blends intelligence with humour. He says that his travels inspire him to write stuff that’s relevant to the audience
Who has been your stand-up comedy influenceIJ
The one major influence I can think of would be Eddie Izzard. He has a combination of intelligence and stupidity all rolled into one, and does it with consummate ease, and that’s something I find really interesting.
Does travelling help you hone your skillsIJ
It does, in a way, especially in India, because different audience have different reactions to a particular joke. You need to know what joke works in what environment. Travelling to perform for different audience is a big help to gauge your material.
What is more difficult — writing something humorous or performing itIJ
Both are connected and difficult. You could write the greatest joke in the world and it would fall flat because it isn’t delivered right. likewise, a good joke can be made a great joke if the delivery is spot on.
Who do you look forward for feedbackIJ
My wife, oddly enough. She’s my best critic, and she gets my humour. As a comic, you do run things by your peers as well, but people with different styles will often give you conflicting opinions. If I find a joke genuinely funny in my head, I do it on stage, irrespective of what people may tell me about it.
You gently amalgamate range of topics from festivities to suicide bombings in your stage acts. What has the audience reaction been likeIJ
I’ve never had an issue, honestly. I think that’s because we’ve learnt to laugh at ourselves, and having grown up as a Muslim, I think it gives me a certain to talk about these things. I’ve never had any issues or any bad reactions, and long may that continue.
Given that you started stand-up comedy just for fun, how has things changed since you decided to pursue it as a professionIJ
It’s great when you start, because any vocation has its honeymoon period. It’s after the first year or two when you encounter the inevitable writer’s block that you start questioning yourself and your ability, and wonder if you’re still funny. I tend to get depressed and ask myself why I’m doing this with my life every other week. I had once interviewed Vir Das before I got into stand-up and asked him whether he’s ever hit rock bottom, and he said, “Yes, it happens every other week”, and I’ve realised now that’s rather true!
Now that you are performing in the contemporary week, do you think that stand-up comedy is being accepted as a serious form of artIJ
Absolutely! It is an established art form in the west, and we’re slowly starting to embrace it in India as well. More and more people are getting aware of stand-up gigs in pubs and clubs across the metros, and even picking a night of comedy over the average Bollywood movie. The fact that people can make a reasonable living off doing 10 or 12 shows a month shows that it’s a viable career option as well, if you’re willing to work and give it a couple of years to hopefully break into the big league.
One gig that is most memorable to you.
My first solo gig where I was the headlining act. It wasn’t the biggest show with just around 170 people, but it was the most amazing experience of my life to see that I could hold a crowd and get them to laugh at everything I said for an hour.
Would you like to see any changes in the comedy scene in IndiaIJ
We need more venues that take stand-up seriously, whether that’s dedicated clubs, or pubs that have a designated stand-up night.
The more the venues, the more the interest, and the more stage time for comics to perform and up their game. Right now there are only two major players in the country in terms of comedy clubs that are trying to push the scene, and we need more people to take a chance and open a small comedy club, even if it’s a tiny 50 seater room, just so that people have another option for a night out, and comedians have a platform to grow.