‘This isn’t just about laughing’
27 Aug 2012 10:08 PM GMT
There are categories even in stand-up comedians. There are those who are just blabbering and then there is Sanjay Rajoura who wants to make his point very clear — he hates corporates. He wants you to not just laugh, he wants you to think. A critically acclaimed stand-up comic and social critic Rajoura is casual, hilarious, very earthy and a Jat [which also he wants to remind you all the time]. A comedy series Laughaccino — Coffee Gehri Baatein, an eight part series will be performed at various Costa outlets on Friday evenings by Rajoura. Millennium Post caught up with him for a chat. Excerpts:
How did stand-up comedy happen?
It just happened. I just talked about things people haven’t in a long time and then it all became funny for them. It wasn’t planned.
What is the Gehri baatein series all about?
This series is not just about laughing and getting back home. I want people to think deeply over the points and things I am mocking at, therefore, ‘Gehri Baatein’.
You seem to hate corporates a lot and talk about cultural shocks as well...
I have worked with the corporate world for 12 long years. I know how pathetic they are. When I went to America, I was greeted by a stranger there which generally does not happen in India. In India, we stare at people but do not pass a smile. This was new for me! So, my acts are all about all that I have seen and experienced. My hatred for corporates also comes from experience.
Your acts always have an underlying social message in them. Is that a conscious decision?
Yes, that’s a conscious decision. When I make fun of the IPL and ask people what sense does it make that a guy from Aligarh is going to Bangalore just to support Royal Challengers? What frenzy is this? The money put in IPL, where is that coming from? It is not a sport it is again the vicious corporate. If I have a platform where people are buying tickets just to laugh [imagine how pathetic their life is], why not just send a social message disguised as a joke. No harm done!
You recently worked in a movie The Fiction, which was showcased at Osian’s Cinefan, any plans of entering the film industry?
There are movies lined up— End the occupation and The Golden Triangle which have still not hit the floors. Yes, there are movies lined up but I want to live a relaxed life. I am a simple man and want to live like my own self. All that comes along I would take that up.
DETAILS
AT: Costa Coffee, Malviya Nagar, Main market
When:31 August
Time: 8 pm onwards
Entry: Rs 250 per person
On Till: October 2012
How did stand-up comedy happen?
It just happened. I just talked about things people haven’t in a long time and then it all became funny for them. It wasn’t planned.
What is the Gehri baatein series all about?
This series is not just about laughing and getting back home. I want people to think deeply over the points and things I am mocking at, therefore, ‘Gehri Baatein’.
You seem to hate corporates a lot and talk about cultural shocks as well...
I have worked with the corporate world for 12 long years. I know how pathetic they are. When I went to America, I was greeted by a stranger there which generally does not happen in India. In India, we stare at people but do not pass a smile. This was new for me! So, my acts are all about all that I have seen and experienced. My hatred for corporates also comes from experience.
Your acts always have an underlying social message in them. Is that a conscious decision?
Yes, that’s a conscious decision. When I make fun of the IPL and ask people what sense does it make that a guy from Aligarh is going to Bangalore just to support Royal Challengers? What frenzy is this? The money put in IPL, where is that coming from? It is not a sport it is again the vicious corporate. If I have a platform where people are buying tickets just to laugh [imagine how pathetic their life is], why not just send a social message disguised as a joke. No harm done!
You recently worked in a movie The Fiction, which was showcased at Osian’s Cinefan, any plans of entering the film industry?
There are movies lined up— End the occupation and The Golden Triangle which have still not hit the floors. Yes, there are movies lined up but I want to live a relaxed life. I am a simple man and want to live like my own self. All that comes along I would take that up.
DETAILS
AT: Costa Coffee, Malviya Nagar, Main market
When:31 August
Time: 8 pm onwards
Entry: Rs 250 per person
On Till: October 2012
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