Comedy is a messy business. Stand-up is even messier. Contrary to what people think, writing jokes and merely getting up on stage isn’t enough to make people laugh. Open mic’ers will vouch for the hours spent, on trying to consider a premise from different angles in order to get that laugh.
Even pros in the industry got some things wrong before getting them right. Anirban Dasgupta, Sourav Ghosh and Vaibhav Sethia not only spent years building Kolkata’s stand-up comedy scene from scratch but have also had to shape their comedy for a wider, national audience.
While Anirban and Vaibhav both have comedy specials on Amazon Prime Video (Take It Easy and Don’t) Sourav currently manages TopCat Retired Comedy Club, a haven for Kolkata’s comics. He has also co-written the critically acclaimed dark comedy, Afsos with Anirban, on Amazon Prime Video.
Naturally, My Kolkata couldn’t let their plethora of experiences go untapped. From editing and tightening their material to coping with bombing on-stage, the city’s funniest trio has answers for every question budding comics may have.
What’s the most challenging part of the writing process?
Find the answer between 2:47 and 3:25.
After you write a joke, how do you work on its performance?
Find the answer at 0:28.
How do you make your material tighter?
Watch from 0:10 to 0:20.
What do you do when a joke doesn’t land?
Find the answer at 12:26.
How does a comic find their voice?
Watch from 2:27 to 2:46 for the answer.
How do you know you’re ready to shoot a video?
Watch from 0:03 to 0:11.