Why so Serious?

Anu Menon and Kaneez Surkha at the Cheer! Comedy Festival, held in Mumbai

Mumbai-based improv artiste Kaneez Surkha is often, to her annoyance, introduced as a stand-up comedian. There have been times when people have left her shows disappointed, expecting a stand-up act. “Improv is the ugly, neglected cousin of stand-up,” says Surkha.
Surkha was among the few improvisers who performed at the third edition of Cheer! Comedy Festival 2014 held at National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA), Mumbai, last week. While the festival did feature improv, stand-up acts formed the bulk of performers. Director of programming for NCPA, Deepa Gahlot admits that the response for stand-up has always been greater than that for improv. “There are more comics than improvisers in the city, perhaps because improv is much tougher,” she says, about the form of comedy that was introduced in Mumbai in 2009, a few years after stand-up.
The difficulty in improv lies in taking to stage without a script. “Unlike stand-up comics who perform with a prepared routine, improv artistes react to audience suggestions on the fly. The content changes every second, so you have to be at your funniest best at all times,” says Brij Bhakta, who has been an improv artiste for the past 15 years.
“The shows in Mumbai have references to popular culture or regional quirks, so you might hear a slow love ballad sung in the style of Yo Yo Honey Singh or 10 of the best improvised pick-up lines used during Navratri,” says Adam Dow, founder of Improv Comedy Mumbai, one of the first troupes in the country.
Delhi-based improv artistes affirm that improv theatre is an art in itself, that brings the best of theatre and comedy together. They also coordinate with groups in Bombay and Bangalore for some of their acts, says Varoon P Anand, Artistic Director at CueLess, an improv Group in Delhi.
The hit television show, Whose Line Is It Anyway?, has helped the genre reach a wider audience in the West. There are festivals and schools dedicated to improv abroad, but in India there is no supporting infrastructure. Anand, who trained in improv theatre in Panama, holds free workshops for about six weeks, in Delhi, for those interested in learning the art.
Madhav Mehta, founder of Epic Shit Entertainment in Delhi, says “Improv theatre has opened a new realm between stand-up and theatre. It is an art that is gaining momentum and must be supported.”

— With inputs from Suyash Gabriel