Stand-up comedian in Chandigarh: Working as an actor is different from stand-up, says Kanan Gill

Kanan Gill.

WHEN you meet comedians, the first thing you expect them to do is crack jokes. But with Kanan Gill, it is different. He may be a fun-loving person, but definitely not pretentious. Gill started his journey as a software engineer and is now a stand-up comedian, who has also made his Bollywood debut with Noor and presented his stand-up comedy act here in Chandigarh.  “In college, I used to be a part of a band and I used to write funny songs and play them with my band. At that time I knew two things – one is that I like to be on stage, I like to make people laugh and that I was able to do it. When I was doing software I was very unhappy, then I got to do stand-up I was like ‘Chalo try karte hai’ and after I tried it, I was like ‘I want to keep doing this’. I didn’t think I would make enough money from stand-up and I would not have to do any job. So I took a little break from my job and did comedy. It actually took off and I decided this will be my job. Although rarely, I sometimes miss having fixed working hours when you have to work, and at home, you don’t have any work,” he said.

A Punjabi at heart, Gill was keen to present his act in Chandigarh and absolutely excited to see a houseful. “If people are laughing, my job is done!” Having made it to Bollywood without a Godfather, Gill has already learnt a lot through his experience in. “Working as an actor is very different from what I do in stand up. In comedy, you write everything yourself and then you perform it yourself. In a film, somebody writes, somebody else directs and you just act. You have to completely trust the people you are working with, that is what I learnt after working in Noor,” he said.

From being an engineer to a comedian and now an actor, Gill feels a person should not stick to just one profession. “I have written a movie script, and now want to write a book. I used to be a singer in a band during college and 100 per cent I would want to have a music album of my own. The problem is, there are too many ambitions and not enough time. I really need to prioritise.”  Since Kanan is a fan of video games and says his autobiography will be titled ‘Running through checkpoints – The Kanan Gill Story.’ The comedian is set to make his debut on Amazon Prime as well, a comedy show. “I am very excited about it. It’s a one-hour show. I have worked very hard for it and I have high expectations from it,” Gill said.