After months of performing sanitised content (read taboo topics), stand-up comedian Nitin Gupta just couldn’t get himself to do the same thing anymore. In his latest show called Thought Experiments, he unleashes all coyness to come to stage with zero reluctance to say things as they are. The subtext deals with the immoral side of morality, sexual stereotypes, evolution of clothes, why nostalgia leads to wars, the difference in sexual appetites of men and women, challenging logic and others that he may think of spontaneously. ‘‘Earlier, I was mostly just performing at colleges and corporates. The content, therefore, had to be regulated. There could be little or no talk of religion, politics, gender etc. It got to a point when it became stifling. Now, things are different and when one performs at venues like Epicentre, the sensibilities are different,’’ says Gupta.
While the IITian was still in college, he says, being the funny man helped him score brownie points with girls. But he soon realised it works the other way round. ‘‘If a girl likes a boy in the first place, she’ll automatically find him funny,’’ he chuckles.
Always ready and confident before a show, Gupta says he hopes people have a good laugh, and also grasp the depth of the issues he tackles. ‘‘If both happen in equal measures, the funny man will feel fabulous. ’’
Date August 22
Time 7.30 pm
Venue Epicentre,
Gurgaon
Language Hinglish
Duration 60 minutes
In a LINE Then...
Your last oops! moment... Somebody called when I was in the bathroom, and I came out only to realise I had forgotten to zip up.
The kind of audience you dislike... Religious fanatics
The kind of audience you love...Youngsters
When people randomly tell you to make them laugh...politely refuse
Things you don’t find funny...stereotypical jokes about Punjabis being loud, women being bad drivers etc.