BENGALURU: Nagpur-born and now based in Mumbai, Sumukhi Suresh has always held Bengaluru close to her heart. It’s what she calls her ‘creative home,’ the city where her comedy career took root and where she’ll return later this month with a fresh take on her hit stand-up show, Hoemonal. “Bengaluru always gets my newest material – my first 20 minutes here are almost always brand new. This is where I put out my most unfiltered show,” she says.
“It feels almost poetic. My first-ever 1,000-seater show was here, and now my first 2,000-seater show. It feels like a good omen like everything’s come full circle.” She adds, “My show Pushpavalli is also set here. Bengaluru has been a recurring theme in my career and I think it always will be.”
Hoemonal is a deeply personal exploration of her experiences as a 30-something navigating relationships, body image, female independence and more. “I started writing and performing it during the pandemic,” she shares. “I had just ended a long-term relationship and suddenly found myself free to figure out who I was and what I wanted. But I felt incredibly guilty about it. I often joke that I’m not good at this; I was raised conservatively, and navigating my 30s with all the hormonal shifts has been wonderfully chaotic.”
The show also delves into Suresh’s experience with PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome) and the ups and downs of managing hormonal health. “I tackle body image, physical pain, and the emotional toll of health struggles,” she says. “The joke is never on the audience – it’s always on me, which has always been my style.”
While Hoemonal has reached international audiences, including recently at the Edinburgh Fringe, Suresh says Bengaluru remains her most comfortable stage. “Bengaluru audiences are amazing; they’re disciplined and open-minded. If you don’t do well in Bengaluru, it’s not the city’s fault; it’s yours,” she laughs. “They’re genuinely receptive to all kinds of comedy, and they’re happy you’ve come to their city to perform. There’s almost a hospitality to the way Bengalureans receive comedy.”
Meanwhile, Suresh says there are fresh additions to the show that Bengaluru audiences can look forward. “A comic will open with an SNL–style monologue for my 7pm show, as Tanmay Bhat did at my Mumbai show,” she reveals. “My show has this high-energy vibe; it’s like a celebration. It’s funny, exciting, and even though it ends on a more reflective note, you walk out with that high energy.”
Arguably one of the country’s most successful comics, Suresh has diversified her pursuits into multiple areas, from writing to acting, and more recently, entrepreneurship. “I’ve always said it takes multiple things to make one an artiste. For me, if you made me focus on just one thing, I don’t think I’d be a very good artiste. I need to do multiple things to feel like one complete artiste.
Writing, whether for films or dialogues, really makes me happy and keeps me motivated. It even makes me better on stage – my work writing for films and shows has definitely made me a better stand-up comedian,” she explains. “As for acting, I genuinely enjoy it, whether it’s a comedic role or a drama. Using that part of my craft is fulfilling, and it absolutely helps on stage. Then there’s entrepreneurship, which for me is a way to ensure some longevity in this field; it’s about building something lasting – a legacy.”