BENGALURU: Unlike many of us who are facing a mundane time during the lockdown, Sumukhi Suresh has had busy days, and not just because of the mounting household chores. First, it was the buzz after the release of her series, Pushpavalli 2, which came out just before the lockdown was announced in March. And now, the Bengaluru-based stand-up comedian’s latest act, which she has written and acted in, has been launched as part of Amazon Funnies on Amazon Prime Video. Started on Aug.7, it will feature 14 stand-up comedians tickling your funny bone during their 10-minute slot.
Talking about how glad she is to be back, Suresh says, “It’s always an amazing feeling. Even if it’s a 10-minute act, it’s exciting to write new jokes,” adds Suresh, who is playing three characters in her act. Though she misses the thrill and energy of live shows, the confinement during the lockdown pushed her to change the way of creating her content.
“Most comedians have moved from topical or anecdote observation, because how much can you do jokes on the corona. We are now going towards more personal jokes on family but looking at a bigger spectrum,” she says. Suresh feels that the lockdown has also been a good content provider, especially with comedians who started doing household chores. “You will see how many jokes come on jhadoo-poocha,” laughs.
Ask her if she has managed to crack the comic formula or if she has always been a person with quirky
jokes, and Suresh replies that she is a “funny” person in real life too but there is surely a process that she follows. “If I am not inherently funny, you would not laugh even if I crack the best joke. At the end of the day, the comedians that last in an audience’s mind are those who genuinely believe what they are doing or saying,” she says, adding that the process involves going to open mics, writing your own scripts, and observing people, etc.
Her last series, Pushpavalli 2, was a massive success, but she doesn’t feel the pressure in her new show. “I have not processed the success yet. It did better that Season 1, but since it was released online just before the lockdown, there was no live audience,” says Suresh, who herself loves to binge watch Fleabag.
Now, one of the top things on her to-do list when the pandemic subsides is having a live act. But before anything else, she wants to meet her parents. “My father love his girls (the other one being my niece), and the first thing I want to do is visit them in Nagpur,” she adds.