Comedy was not Angad Singh Ranyal’s top choice of career when he moved to Mumbai from Delhi to pursue MBA. But passion ruled and instead of working in some multinational company, he figures as one of the top 20 comedians according to CNN-IBN.
Of course, says Angad, who was at The Park recently to perform at an event organised by the Vizag Komedians, he did have to do time at a multinational company in order to pay off his education loan.
But it has been four years since he quit his job and he is not one bit regretful. “I was more interested in theatre. I learnt about stand-up comedy through open mics and decided to give it a try,” he says.
The initial days were tough as his acts tanked and not many laughed at his jokes. However, things changed as today he performs across the country and there is no dearth of appreciative laughter that welcomes him wherever he goes. He is also a part of the East India Comedy group. Angad confesses that a lot of his punchlines are thanks to his parents whom he calls ‘naturally funny’! He raises a lot of laughter when he describes his Punjabi Mom.
Sometimes comedy does more than just make people laugh. The personal experiences comedians share, funny as they are, also carry a social message. “In the international stand-up scene, this is very common,” he adds.
Writing jokes is serious business, says Angad. They are rarely on the spot spontaneous funny lines. A joke has to undergo several edits before it actually becomes a punchline. “When we write jokes, we think they are brilliant and hilarious. It is only when we say them out loud in front of a live audience do we realise they are neither! That is the time to learn to let go of those jokes or hone them so much that they actually end up being funny.” It is tough to be funny always, sighs Angad.
“Being an established comedian obviously means that people expect you to be funny all the time. So if we are trying jokes and punchlines for the first time we make a disclaimer that it is new material and the audience should not have high expectations. Oh yes, we also price the tickets a little cheaper than usual!”