The ongoing lockdown has forced many of us to alter the way we go about our daily routine. Chennaites share tales of the changes they have made to adapt to the new ‘normal’ of living and working with limited interaction
Rabindher Kanan (30), Stand-up comic
Chennai:
As a comic, this is a strange place to be. My full-time profession involves a large number of people gathering in a small place. Just for perspective, the whole world is going through this. For the first week or two, we were laying low. It almost felt like it was time to hold back, but the community has adapted to online shows, which we have adapted to quickly. We were initially cautious because we didn’t know if people wanted to attend shows. But that got negated because we’ve had a healthy turnout. It’s a reminder that people want to laugh. It’s a welcome distraction for people.
A Zoom show can never replace a live show. We’ve tinkered around the format to give a format. Audiences even heckle online so it’s been good. There’s been an excess of corona jokes, too. I haven’t been able to do any of my old sets. I’ve been trying new material. The old stuff isn’t relevant at this time. Talking about taking an Uber is an alien experience. We’ve been adapting old content to the corona context or making new content. We’re trying to tap into the lack of experiences in people’s lives. What happens when you sit at home all day and think about nothing? If this is the new reality, it might get more difficult to find new premises to find a funny angle. But the good thing is that the world is adapting - boring office meetings are now boring Zoom meetings. The world is functioning but in a different. I don’t stay positive. I freak out every day. I just hope I can find the funny after my freak out. It takes effort to forget about the rising cases and think of punch lines. I’ve embraced the freaking out.