Comedians are just entertainers: Punit Pania

‘English comedians in India get fewer death threats’

Falah Faisal | NT

Bengaluru: Standup comedian Punit Pania has a specific and dedicated following which he is very aware of.

“Only people who are taxpayers come to my show. It isn’t until the government has reached into your pockets and taken your hard-earned money will you understand my frustration,” he jokes as he opens the set of his show ‘No Country for Moderation’, which he was also filming for YouTube when he performed at BIC on Saturday.

Stoic and self-aware he dishes out his opinions on a range of topics including other comedians who have sold out in order to become content creators and band promoters. “The advantage of being an English comedian in this country is that you get fewer death threats. For every sentence I speak in English in my videos, I might lose a few lakh views but I also get a hundred fewer threats which is a fair deal. At least no one is coming to my show with swords,” says the comedian who likens leaving any city to passing through hell.

He takes particular exception to actor Ajay Devgn, who he believes promotes Gutka and Nationalism, ‘both of which are harmful to health.’ “The movies we grew up watching in the 90s, I feel we should get our money back. And Ajay Devgn was in all of them. Even if he didn’t act in them, he was there in spirit,” he jokes.

The show which runs a little over 90 minutes sees him taking liberal stances on a lot of topics like politics, the economy, and religion. “I feel there will come a time where cricket, religion, and politics in our country will become just one thing,” he says.

Also added, “The best thing you can do as a comedian is not take anything seriously, even your own jokes, especially your own jokes.” He ends the show by saying that he is grateful to finally have an audience now having performed in empty rooms in the most random places throughout his career and will be returning to the city to perform his other shows on Christmas weekend.