In the Name of Comedy

How Comedians Address Cultural Issues, Challenge Societal Norms and Push Boundaries With Humor

Imagine this: We never greet anyone with a smile; We do not care to laugh or show any expression to indicate joy; We never feel the need to giggle, smirk, tease, joke, trick, quip, or prank - even when the situation calls for it; We’re always sporting our best dead-pan look. What would that be like?

Drum roll by Josh Sorenson on Unsplash

It’d be like a person taking orders at your local Chinese takeout.

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That was a joke.

Did you find it funny? Or did it come too close to crossing a racial line? Are you judging me right now?

Now, what if I told you I’m merely quoting a stand-up comedian. Would that make you feel better? Is it suddenly acceptable?

We give stand-up comedians the license to say anything that they want in the name of comedy, to which we are prepared to set all our preconceived notions and prejudices aside, laugh out loud, and fall off our seats.

I think it’s fascinating that we have such a double standard when it comes to who we allow to take us on a laughter ride breaking through our moral fences.

“If you are trying to be a good person at a comedy show, you are wasting your goddamn time.”

Said Taylor Tomlinson prepping her audience about the uncomfortable nature of her jokes. If you ask me, she doesn’t come close when compared to other stand-ups. See post credit for my take on some of comedy’s greats and their modus operandi.

But it’s true. You got to leave your prejudices at home, and check your inhibitions at the door before you walk into a comedy show. And most people do. We are there to unwind, laugh, and maybe even learn something new.

Then why is it that we act so differently out in the open, in real-world situations?

“Why so serious?”

Back in the early days of visiting America on business trips I made a few good friends, those who were born and brought up in the conservative southern bible belt. We bonded quickly and developed a good understanding of each other’s culture and upbringing. We could talk about cultural nuances, race, and religion, with genuine inquisitiveness. We had mutual respect for one another.

One evening, we were out with other teammates at a pub to unwind. Groups of us were seated across a few tables. John and I started our usual banter about stuff and it touched upon race and culture. Just casual stuff, nothing provocative. Soon enough, the others at our table made excuses to move away. True story.

This was the early 2000’s. Conservative America was still very shielded from real-world reality. I am sure those were not the type of conversations they were exposed to and it made people uncomfortable. I understand.

It was weird for me probably because growing up in a diverse environment that is India, my friends and I would have healthy debates about religious differences, each one bringing their perspective, never treading too far towards personal attacks or character assassinations.

America has come a long way since then, especially in the last decade. More stand-up comedians have emerged from a conservative upbringing and have become the trailblazers of change.

We need to be able to talk about these things, in a socially conscious manner, without the fear of being trolled on social media, and especially not in an extremist, fanatical or judgmental way. We’re not there yet but I believe we can get there.

Meanwhile, India has its problems to solve when it comes to acceptance.

Some jokes can be deadly.

When the British ruled India they used religion as a tool to cause division in the country. It worked as a strategy and even after our independence, to this day, some of those wounds still aggravate us.

So when an Indian stand-up comedian performs to a diverse audience, with their religious differences, who speak a variety of dialects, who are classified as South/East/West/North Indian, conscious of their skin tone, criticized for their political preferences, the jokes invariably pry open some of those deep wounds of history.

When an Indian stand-up comedian goes up on stage, she is facing judgment day and her life after the show could be turned upside down if a fanatical faction decides to. If any joke goes against the propaganda of the ruling party he is at the risk of getting arrested, as happened to the comedian Nalin Yadav who was accused of “insulting Hindu deities” in 2021.

So the choice of an Indian comic is simple - stick to clean family-friendly jokes and stay away from controversial topics, or risk their own lives as they try to change deep-rooted prejudiced perspectives through comedy.

Most of them seem to be taking the risk. I applaud their bravery and wish them luck.

In closing… I’ll say this.

We are too afraid to have real conversations about stuff that’s happening around us. Whether it’s politics or culture or religion or any topic for that matter that we have strong opinions about, we fear that if we open up we will end up damaging relationships.

We should be able to talk about stuff without being judged or cautioned. If we can tolerate dark uncomfortable topics when total strangers package them as comedy, why can’t we accept them in our close-knit circles?

How do you feel about it? Are we headed in the right direction towards a culture of mutual respect and acceptance?

If you are still here wanting an encore performance, I won’t disappoint. Keep reading.

Praise be to the Gods of comedy.

I watch a lot of stand-up comedy, mainly on Netflix although I have been to a few memorable live shows which were a hoot.

My all-time favorite comedian is Jerry Seinfeld. His situational comedy to me is the best kind. It is relatable and brilliant in showing us a lighter side of everyday happenings, the things we miss, often leaving us thinking “why didn’t I think of that?”. The likes of Seinfeld and the late George Carlin can look at a situation with childlike innocence, strip out all of its deep layers that we would normally see, and craftily expose its funny core.

I stumbled upon Michael McIntyre’s “Showman” special on Netflix recently, and he cracked me up. He too takes everyday matters that would fly by our mind radars as insignificant and presents them in a hilarious theatrical way. He is also a master of accents, which is another trait very few comedians possess.

Doing accents can be a double-edged sword in my opinion. If you do it tastefully the audience gobbles it up, but many comedians use it to mock and stereotype people and cultures. Russel Peters walks a tight line when he does accents, and sometimes he is borderline offensive. The success of doing accents in comedy goes back to the subject and of course the presentation.

Don’t get shot point-blank by a Comedian.

Many years ago my wife and I with some friends went to see Russell Peters perform live in Bangalore. We were seated in the front row. Not a good spot. We are prey. Just don’t make eye contact when he turns your way. You laugh looking down or looking at your friend, all the while praying that he’ll spare your life. It’s a tense situation.

There was this elderly lady with her 20-something grandson in the front row, not on our side thankfully, and the only reason we didn’t get eaten alive by Russell. She was not happy at all. It looked like she hated all the jokes, most of them X-rated and offensive especially if you were born before the 70s.

He picked on them, nothing mean or demeaning, he just called them out. Made some off-the-cuff jokes about her reaction to him, or the lack of it. After a while, they left leaving two empty front row seats. No takers.

My advice to you: when you go to see a stand-up act in person, and you’re all set to get lost in a night of laughter, please plan to get lost in the crowd as well. Stay hidden. Enjoy the show.

The Harley Quinns’ of comedy.

In no particular order: Chelsea Handler, Amy Schumer, Ali Wong, Margaret Cho, and Sarah Silverman are just a few of the greats in female stand-up comedy that I enjoy watching. They slash and slay you with their jokes usually deep-rooted with messages around relationships, equality, and inclusiveness.

Taylor Tomlinson is a young and upcoming comedian whose Netflix special called “Look at you” packs in punchlines from personal experiences of love, trauma, and depression, each delivered with the precision of a multi-shot aerial firework display, setting off a series of sequenced perfectly timed jokes.

I wonder what the world looks like from Taylor’s point of view. Does it look like an episode set in Walt Disney’s Acme Corporation where we are bumbling and fumbling around like some cartoon characters?

It is worth exploring how a comedian’s brain works so we can all learn from it as we navigate our crazy serious daunting lives. We all need to lighten up some.

Some brains work in mysterious ways.

Kevin Hart is all about self-deprecating jokes. His comedy focuses on his life and his issues, which makes it a comfortable space for the audience I would think. It takes a different kind of courage to be able to write material that looks back into your life gone by, the ups and downs, and talk about your family, and shortcomings to absolute strangers. These comedians get personal and gain our trust immediately. It feels realistic and relatable.

If you Google “Who is the #1 comedian?” it’s Kevin Hart at Rank 1, then Jerry Seinfeld. I didn’t know that until this post but this ranking is purely based on income. In terms of relevance, it’s always Seinfeld for me. For you, it might be another comedian.

Then there is Chapelle. His brain works in mysterious ways. His comedy is dark and hard to digest. He lives in the gray area of comedy. I think he uses reverse psychology, which will push us to the edge with negativity until we find it repulsive and contradictory to our beliefs, and then all of a sudden, unexpectedly, he swirls to do a 180 on the topic to deliver a powerful message and some hard truths come out. It’s a roller-coaster ride. You’ve got to try it if you are an adrenaline junkie.

That’s all folks.

Curtains close. Lights out.