Aditi Mittal hardly pauses. You sense a distinct discomfort when she does so even over the telephone. Interrupting her or trying to fill in the chat often seemed a bother. Natural, for Aditi is a ‘professional chatterbox’, one whose career revolves around chirpy banter.
Rare breed
In the world of Indian stand up comedy Aditi is a rare breed. In fact, she is the only woman to make the grade. Quite a feat!
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Stand up comedy is not really new to the country. But the English kind is relatively new and there are just a handful of experienced practitioners, though the tribe is certainly growing. Aditi can be counted among the top ten.
She, along with Kunal Rao, Praveen Kumar and Birj Bhakta, will present ‘Laff Lines’ at JTPac, Tripunithura, on July 7 at 7 p.m. This will be the first ever stand up comedy to be staged in the city.
Despite the crackling telephone, her hearty laughter spiced up her lively chat. Aditi spoke to
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Theatre experience
With a Bachelor’s degree in Communication from New York, Aditi dabbled for sometime in theatre. She acted in a “bunch of serious Broadway plays” before returning to India. Acting was her ‘labour of love,’ her priority. She played a significant role in the Eve Ensler play, ‘I am An Emotional Creature: The Secret Lives of Girls Around The World,’ directed by Mahabanoo Mody Kotwal. “I did a couple of commercials and a couple of television serials like ‘CID.’ I love television for all the crap. It is now part of my life. Hopefully, I’m not keen on films. I’m glued on to television, it is an inspiring idiot box after all,” says Aditi who also teaches Creative Writing at KC College, Mumbai.
“I teach for four hours, once a week. Moving ahead there are plans of writing a book. I have been working with a couple of other friends on a project for Random House. It’s about Bollywood.”
Live shows are what really gives Aditi a ‘kick.’ She has appeared on ‘Jay Hind,’ probably the country’s first online stand-up show and was also a regular on ‘Phenking News’ on CNN-IBN. But it is perhaps as a stand up comedian that Aditi is best known.
Stand up comedy is not easy art. Nor is it all about uttering four-letter words and cracking raunchy jokes. Aditi, who started off nearly three years ago, is a rare breed in this field. Her brand of humour is personal, observational and does around 120 shows yearly.
“Well, if some beginners in this genre believe that stand up comedy is all about four letter words and filthy jokes they are wrong. It can be irreverent and personal. The talk can be a mishmash of politics, societal issues, intimate relationships and more. And if a performer does four letter worlds it is only after he or she has earned the right to use them on stage.”
Many challenges
Being a woman has not really been very easy and there are very few women making it to this field. The challenges are many. Apart from the usual hecklers, women laughing out loud or cracking jokes was traditionally considered a sort of stigma. And stand up comedy itself is relatively new in the country.
“Over the years the demand has been growing. But apart from ‘The Comedy Store’, there are hardly any dedicated comedy clubs. Of late pubs, restaurants, clubs have started hosting ‘open mike’ events. They are casual shows where beginners can try out their act. There has been a steady growth in the number that appears for these shows. The stand up scene is growing.”
Kochi, hosting stand up comedy for the first time, will be another venue where this genre can possibly explode.And Aditi is excited about the prospect of meeting a new audience. “Stand up comedy comes with a lot of parameters. Laughter itself is an aggressive action.
People don’t want to be seen laughing. We try to build a camaraderie among this group. I’m just waiting to meet Kochi and walking around the place,” Aditi gushes.