Stand-up comedian Karunesh Talwar
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| karunesh Talwar |
Karunesh Talwar. One of the few comics who aren't hacks. He understands comedy better than anybody in the circuit. He's smart, edgy, direct and truthful.
He is one of the most prolific writers of comedy content in India having written for All India Bakchod and Weirdass comedy. He's been omnipresent in the scene for so long yet unseen.
He has a new special called 'paka mat na mote' which he is touring around the country. It's a must watch. He sings for 20mins at the end. I have personally seen him get numerous standing ovations.
This boy dropped out of college at 19 and never looked back. He knows what he's doing and makes a lot of sense on stage, even though mostly performing for 30 people.
Karunesh Talwar is a young stand-up comedian who isn’t afraid to speak his mind. Born in Ghaziabad but brought up in Mumbai, this Mithibai College student first tried his hand at music with his band, Fatman’s Entourage (which was a huge failure in his opinion), and then started his stand-up career . Talwar now writes for Vir Das’ Weirdass Comedy and regularly gets invited to perform at venues such as the Comedy Store. Talwar is a strong orator which serves him well when he goes on long angry rants. His style draws clear parallels with stand-up legend, Bill Hicks, whose strongly anti-religious rants are considered the stuff of comedy legend. His breathless ranting is quite frantic but entertaining and it makes you wonder if he’s going to pull a gun out and go on a killing spree. Stand-up comedian Karunesh Talwar is the same, on stage or off. He will not speak in different voices, make funny faces or prance around to evoke comedy. Instead, his funny acts are laced with smart words; his comedy focuses on the written script. “There are people (comedians) who do that kind of comedy and it works well for them; it’s just not my way. My belief is that I want to get laughs on the basis of the written word. When I am on stage, I like to stand at one place and talk. The idea is to make it look less like a performance, if possible. The audience should feel the host is talking to them,” he points out.
He is one of the most prolific writers of comedy content in India having written for All India Bakchod and Weirdass comedy. He's been omnipresent in the scene for so long yet unseen.
He has a new special called 'paka mat na mote' which he is touring around the country. It's a must watch. He sings for 20mins at the end. I have personally seen him get numerous standing ovations.
This boy dropped out of college at 19 and never looked back. He knows what he's doing and makes a lot of sense on stage, even though mostly performing for 30 people.
Karunesh Talwar is a young stand-up comedian who isn’t afraid to speak his mind. Born in Ghaziabad but brought up in Mumbai, this Mithibai College student first tried his hand at music with his band, Fatman’s Entourage (which was a huge failure in his opinion), and then started his stand-up career . Talwar now writes for Vir Das’ Weirdass Comedy and regularly gets invited to perform at venues such as the Comedy Store. Talwar is a strong orator which serves him well when he goes on long angry rants. His style draws clear parallels with stand-up legend, Bill Hicks, whose strongly anti-religious rants are considered the stuff of comedy legend. His breathless ranting is quite frantic but entertaining and it makes you wonder if he’s going to pull a gun out and go on a killing spree. Stand-up comedian Karunesh Talwar is the same, on stage or off. He will not speak in different voices, make funny faces or prance around to evoke comedy. Instead, his funny acts are laced with smart words; his comedy focuses on the written script. “There are people (comedians) who do that kind of comedy and it works well for them; it’s just not my way. My belief is that I want to get laughs on the basis of the written word. When I am on stage, I like to stand at one place and talk. The idea is to make it look less like a performance, if possible. The audience should feel the host is talking to them,” he points out.
Karunesh feels this informal method is also a great way of introducing himself to the crowd. This Saturday, he gets ready to acquaint himself with Hyderabadis with his show ‘Paka Na Mat Mote’. He is quick to clarify that the title refers to him and the show is not about fat people. “I personally do not make jokes about fat people. I don’t like doing that about myself. The title means, ‘Stop irritating me’ and it is obviously from the audience’s point of view. My friend made an epic poster for the show and I wanted to give a dumb name so that it gets balanced,” he states.
How it started
He participated in an open mic contest for Vir Das which opened the doors of comedy for him. He has been in the field for five years now and has also written sketches for AIB Roast. “I quit that to focus on freelance work and on my kind of comedy. It was pretty good to have those people around because it gives you a good sense of what you want to do and don’t want to do,” he observes and considers himself fortunate to make a living out of humour. “I liked stand-up comedy since childhood. I never expected that I could make a living out of it,” he smiles.
Of late, we have seen comedians being pulled up for ‘obscene’ content (AIB Roast) and also arrested (Kiku Sharda of Comedy Nights With Kapil), Karunesh feels the audience is not at fault. “Jimmy Carr once said that, “If you come for a stand-up comedy show, you can’t really complain about what you feel and can’t make noise about that because it doesn’t matter outside the room.’ There are controversial opinions and if you don’t agree with me, that is fine, because it is my show. I feel the Indian audience is cool. It is only the laws which are vague and do not protect us. If we have a show of 300 people, all it takes is one person to file a complaint saying ‘you hurt my sentiments.’ Whether I did that or not is another thing, but there will be an enquiry on me and an FIR against me.”
Karunesh jokes of how stand-up comedians make money which encourages even new entrants to launch a YouTube channel. “Unfortunately, there is good money here. In United States and UK, there are actual geniuses, people who have been working for 20 years and are not getting the kind of privileges we are getting right now. I am just a five-year-old in the industry and have a solo show,” he explains and adds, “The big mistake that comedians make is that without developing any kind of act, even one-year-olds upload their stuff on YouTube to get popularity. That is so short-sighted and stupid.” He wants to get better before thinking of a YouTube channel. “My aim is to slowly make Paka Na Mat Mote a two-hour-plus show. You have to hold the audience’s attention and have to write out of your skull, so that it feels funny for them.” Karunesh Talwar is a young comic and writer who made his way into the local comedy scene by winning several open mic competitions, including the Comedy Store's RAW. When not doing stand-up, he can be found doing other things. Also, he's 1/7 billionth the population of the world. Karunesh Talwar is a writer and comedian from Bombay, who regularly performs at venues around the country. He's the youngest professional comic on the circuit. He's opened several times for Vir Das, and was formerly a writer and performer at Weirdass Comedy and All India Bakchod. He's written on several TV shows as well, including Comedy Nights With Kapil. His comedy is incisive and angry, and includes some musical elements also. He talks (and sings) about things that annoy him and piss him off.
Interview of karunesh Talwar
I have an issue when comedians work to become stars: Karunesh Talwar
This spark a fit of laughter with every word he utters. His satirical songs, which he performs with a guitar on stage, can touch a raw nerve and yet force you to laugh at the same time. Karunesh Talwar was in Bengaluru for a gig recently, where we caught up with him.
How is it to be in Bengaluru?
I love this city. This might sound cliché, but the weather is very nice. I like the audience — they are open-minded and appreciate good jokes.
You are one of the few established comics who are not on YouTube...
I am not on YouTube because I believe in the idea of growing in the dark. I think it is important to spend time first getting better at what you are doing and only show it to people when you have got something. I have a bit of an issue when comedians work to become stars. I am not in this because I want to be popular. I am not interested in sketches, I just want to do stand-up..
So no movie aspirations for you?
I just want to do standup. If I can continue to make a living doing this, then I am happy.
Lack of popularity doesn’t get to you?
It doesn’t really affect me much because I like playing small rooms where there are just 10 people. Because if seven of the 10 people laugh, it means your jokes are working. I don’t understand this popularity thing. People leave corporate jobs in order to do comedy.
as it satisfies them, and once they start getting satisfaction, they again make this a corporate job — like they have to produce this much content in a given deadline.
Your material can be termed quite hard-hitting and might even come across as offensive to a certain section of the audience. Has it ever gott you into trouble?
I feel that it’s important to say to people when you are doing the act, ‘Even if you disagree with me, just hang in there because I am not saying you are wrong for the opinion you have; I am just telling you what I think and you are free to disagree.’ I think if you talk to that section of audience nicely rather than get aggressive or exclude them, they are OK.
How did you realize your passion for comedy?
My dad got me a standup VHS when I was 10. I am very grateful for that. I have been watching standup since I was a kid and then my college friends told me I should try it out. And once standup started working out, I quit college.
Who are your favourite comics?
Bill Hicks, Mitch Hedberg, Norm Macdonald,
and among Indians, Varun Grover, Abhishek Upamanyu, Madhvendra Singh and People will know them in 2-3 years when they finally decide to upload videos.
and among Indians, Varun Grover, Abhishek Upamanyu, Madhvendra Singh and People will know them in 2-3 years when they finally decide to upload videos.
We have heard that you want to move abroad...
I absolutely want to. The idea is to start from scratch in America in 3-4 years because all my favourite comics are from there. I am going to give it a shot.
Your views on censorship in comedy...
I feel that more than the person saying anything, the person getting offended is the one causing more harm. People might say things that are crude, but if you decide to make a big deal about it and take it out of context and make it more than just a joke, then you are the one giving it unnecessary
importance. If you censor one thing, you censor everything. It’s like a domino effect.
In a recent interview with us, Jeeveshu Ahluwalia said he eats a lot to keep himself fat as it is related to his comedy. Your show is also named Paka Mat Na Mote. Is it a trend among
comedians to make a joke about their weight?
No, I don’t think so. I am really trying to lose weight. It just so happens that I am fat, and I don’t bring it up much on my set. I disagree with Jeeveshu that you have to stay fat for the character. I don’t think you need to look a certain way. You need to write and you need to practise. There are enough thin comedians who are funny.
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