Standing up for comedy

Swati Rai

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Azeem Banatwalla is the proverbial jack of all trades and master of puns. An engineer-turned-writer-turned-comedian, he is a regular at Mumbai’s Canvas Laugh Factory (previously The Comedy Store) as well as dozens of pubs and clubs around the country. As Azeem puts it, “From engineering to travel-writing to stand-up performances, I like to think of my foray into stand-up comic scene as a series of happy coincidences when the Comedy Store (one of UK’s premier comedy clubs) opened a club in Mumbai. Gradually, the comedy scene started to grow. So I’d say I entered the scene just like any other comedian would.”
Azeem is now a member of Sorabh Pant’s East India Comedy, Indian’s busiest comedy company, and a core member of the acclaimed comedy-specials Comedy News Network and BackBenchers. Talking about stand-up comedy as a full-time career, he opines, “I got my first full spot at the Comedy Store in June 2012, which is when I started taking it seriously. It is a full-time career. I do on an average 12 to 20 shows a month!”
Using quirky, observational humour and semi-sharpened wit, Azeem tries to give his views on topics encompassing sports, Bollywood, religion, politics, and travel, in addition to personal anecdotes that have taught him that life is a lot more tolerable if you take everything with a pinch of salt.
To budding stand-up comics, Azeem says, “Just keep at it. Keep writing material, and keep performing. Early on, I used to get very nervous when audience took offence or didn’t find a particular joke funny. But as your confidence grows as a comic, you get more comfortable with silence, and
even address the fact that the last joke wasn’t funny. Don’t worry about bombing on stage because eventually that’s what helps you grow as a comedian.”
Talking about his future plans he says, “I do stand-up because I enjoy it, and I find it gratifying that people can look at my opinions and find them funny. Through my comedy, I  wish that people think differently and see things from a new perspective. I’m writing a couple of more stand up shows. One of my own and, of course, there’s the Ghanta Awards in early 2015 which I write and perform with my fellow comics at East India Comedy.”
As a parting shot, Azeem comments on his USP, “I just do what I find funny, and I talk about things that transcend your standard mish-mash of Bollywood and politics because I have very little interest in it. I like to talk about things that mean something to me and things I feel strongly about. Having said that, I also like to be silly and irreverent on stage, which I think gives my comedy the style it has. I might sound diplomatic, but there really aren’t any competitors in comedy sphere.” No kidding!