Fresh off a mammoth six-hour rehearsal, Abish Mathew mock-yells at me. “Why are you so punctual?!” Almost immediately after, he decides to try out a different approach: “Hello, haanji , namaste, kaise hain ?” He’s in a taxi with his partner-in-crime, fellow comedian/musician Kenny Sebastian.
The two are excited about their first-ever performance as a musical comedy duo on Saturday at the Bacardi NH7 Weekender in Pune. Also part of the set-up is multi-instrumentalist Nigel Rajaratnam. Mathew and Sebastian have played in bands and performed at concerts in the past, and they often use music in their routines often. Now, they’ve pooled in their songs and come up with a set they feel will have both musical substance and comedic value.
A motley crew
Everyone’s just far too nice in their three-piece set-up, bemoans Mathew. It bothers him; he’s seeking rock ‘n’ roll authenticity. He even contemplates throwing a tantrum on stage briefly. “Let’s add some tension; you can’t be a rockstar if everything’s super chill,” he says. Their 40-minute-long set will comprise nine songs. “The thing about us is that if there’s no humour in it, we won’t play it,” says Mathew.
The set’s a mix of observational comedy, bits, standup routines and funny lyrics. Some written by Sebastian “deconstruct” existing styles of music. There’s one song that critiques and breaks down a certain kind of EDM tune. A romantic number makes its way into the mix because, as Mathew says, you can’t really do music without a love song. “But the thing is, we want to make sure everything sounds melodically great as well. We’re experimenting with different genres; making sure the harmonies are spot on.” Is there a Lennon-McCartney dynamic in their band? “Who’s Lennon McCartney?” asks a baffled Sebastian. “Next you’ll tell me there’s a band called The Insects or something!” Mathew, on the other hand, laments that this is supposedly an old friend of his.
Their project is untitled. According to varying accounts, it’s either Abish and Kenny, or Kenny and Abish. After a spot of debate, Sebastian comes up with a solution. “It’ll be like: ‘This is Abish. This is Kenny. In no order. And this is Nigel. On the bass, we have Nigel. On the guitar, we have Nigel. On the keyboard, we have Nigel.” The two threaten to go on for a while, naming every single instrument Rajaratnam plays, until I interject.
Given their obvious gift at one-liners and willingness to dive into self-deprecation, it’s easy to wonder if they’re just messing around with this whole thing. But that’s really not the case. Of course, there’s a strong element of simply having a good time, but both feel an unmistakable connection to music. They’ve been working diligently to develop a strong set. “Us comedians,” says Mathew, “are very meticulous about our jokes. We’re calculating each minute. We’re critical of each joke, so if something isn’t working out objectively between the three of us, we throw it out. There’s no, ‘Oh, this thing has heart to it — dil se gaana likha hai — we have to play this.’ Not working? Throw it out.”
Comedy as a subculture, like independent music before it, has gained considerable prominence in India over the past few years. Today, the form is a legitimate career; it’s not merely a pastime. “Audiences are looking for an alternative form of entertainment,” says Mathew. “There’s always a need for it. Indie music is transitioning into something people hate to say, but for lack of a better word, ‘mainstream’. There are more venues, more artists, more musicians and comics, more jokes, more songs to listen to. As long as new people keep coming in, it’s only going to grow.”
The parallels exist, but Sebastian points out a fundamental difference between music and comedy. “Music, such as at this festival, is for mainstream consumption. The reason we’re performing at the Weekender is because we can pull a crowd. Comedy is one person’s opinion; you can’t really compare the two. You can listen to a song 100 times, but you can’t hear the same opinion that often,” he says. And Mathew writes original comedy songs, which is much rarer; most of his peers do parody songs. “I do jokes about songs,” says Sebastian. “They’re vignettes, almost; not even full songs. I don’t see [comedy and music] intersecting. We’re a huge anomaly that way. Even abroad, it’s a very small subset of comedians that uses music.”
As of now, they’re not sure if they’ll continue with the act. “We’re just friends right now!” says Sebastian, tongue firmly in cheek. If it goes well, they’ll immediately block a date, but if it doesn’t, their plan is to not show their faces in public for a while. Either way, it should be a fun experiment.
The author is a freelance writer
Abish + Kenny will perform at Bacardi NH7 Weekender Pune today. See Insider.in
