He’s been described as an ‘effortlessly likeable’ comedian, someone whose speciality is ‘merciless humour’. But when Azeem Banatwalla performed at The Leather Bar at The Park last week, he struggled to find his footing. “It took me a while to get the audience warmed up. As a performer, I take some time to set up my jokes; that could be a reason. However, we settled in soon enough, and things were smooth from there. I guess with more stand-up shows, Chennai’s audience too will evolve,” he says.
The comedy scene here is akin to what it was in Mumbai when stand-up comedy first made its foray there. “The crowd then would enjoy sex jokes, quick punches and high-energy acts. Today that has changed, with high-energy acts co-existing with understated humour,” says the comedian.
He insists that his brand of humour is different from that of other Indian stand-up artistes. “My acts are all about things that appeal to me. I analyse religion without being offensive, and I absolutely don’t do political humour or over-the-top adult humour. I am more quirky in my approach with these topics; even when I touch upon religion, it is with tact. At the risk of sounding pompous, I’d say I’m into intelligent humour,” he laughs.
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With the audience across the country evolving, keeping content fresh is a challenge for stand-up artistes, says Azeem. “The audience in places like Mumbai, Bangalore and Kolkata are good at picking up subtle humour, and they no longer shy away from calling out an artiste, if he or she is off the mark. If your material is stereotypical, you can expect to be booed,” he says, adding, “People are more well-read today. So we don’t just pander to the crowd anymore; we talk about things that we want. And I like this challenge of having to constantly reinvent my humour because, after a point, I get bored telling the same jokes over and over again.”
The 6-footer, who spent the initial part of his career writing for various publications, confesses that his acts were written like staid scripts. “I realised I was delivering the same lines in the same way, over and over again. That is no longer the case. I now just prepare a rough draft of points I want to touch upon during an act, and then go on to improvise my jokes based on how the audience receives them,” he says.
His stories stemming from frequent travels and his observation about life in general usually translate to humour on-stage. “It could be my take on the air hostesses or the crying babies around me,” says Azeem, who himself enjoys watching comedians like Bill Burr, Sundeep Rao and Anuvab Pal.
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But the man, who manages to rack up laughs and guffaws throughout his acts, is quite reticent when he’s away from the spotlight. “I think I’m the most confident when I’m on stage. When I’m off it, I’d much rather sit in a corner, finish my drink and go home,” he laughs.