After the official kick-off the night before at Canvas on 5th, the Festival of India 2010 (FOI-2010) hosted by the UT Chapters of Delta Epsilon Psi and the Indian Students Association brought to campus a comedy show featuring South Asian comedians Paul Varghese, Akaash Singh, Sadiq Samani, and Ramin Nazer. The show was scheduled to be held in the Texas Union Theater at University of Texas at Austin on Friday, April 23rd at 7:30 pm. As a venue, the Union Theater was a great choice for its accessibility and ambience and the curtains provided a fairly good backdrop. The crowd started filing in pretty early on as the gates opened at 7 pm, and by the start, the place was quite full.

Essentially a charity comedy show, the proceeds from the event went to the Vishal Bhagat Foundation that provides assistance to the thousands of people affected by Juvenile Diabetes. The show began close to on-time with a welcome note by Aziz Charania. This was soon followed by the famous (or infamous?) laughing yogi video which probably looked to set the mood for the evening and, owing to technical mishaps, was unintentionally successful. Soon after, the curtains were raised and Ramin Nazer, a Texas Alum, introduced himself as the MC as well as the first act of the day.

I remembered Nazer’s name from the SXSW list of possible shows that I could not make it to, and so it was a joy to know that he was going to be on campus! Finalist in NBC’s Stand-Up for Diversity, finalist in the Funniest Person in South Texas and a featured comic on Rooftop Comedy’s most recent compilation album, Nazer has built a reputation around himself. However, his start at the Union Theater was a far shot from being funny – the straight-face and exaggerated sounds at best extracted few confused cackles. However, the act soon warmed up with the “Where’s Waldo” routine as well as the restaurant humor, and overall it was a fair start to the show.

Nazer then introduced the Karachi-born Chicago comic Sadiq Samani. Based on the amount of audienceparticipation that Sadiq was ready to employ, it was easy to see that in addition to standup, Sadiq had also done a lot of improv in his career. Sadiq’s act was bold and the material was strong and focused. From a ‘Pakistani in America’ to ‘Muslim dilemmas’, he was able to bring out a lot of content pertaining to identity and how it plays out in the lives of second-generation South Asian immigrants. His material was fresh and demanding but the audience’s spirited response matched his enthusiasm pretty well. This was the first time I ever came across his act and it certainly won’t be the last.

A self-proclaimed ‘Brown Malcolm’, Aakash Singh’s entry onto the stage was probably the biggest step-up that the show got. The man brings tons of passion and fierce cultural pride to the stage. With a fast-growing repertoire and a resume that boasts gigs in clubs such as Caroline’s, Gotham, and The Comic Strip, this Dallas-born L.A. comic has a lot to offer. What was most impressive, though, was how his whole act was so easy to connect with. His material was fashioned perfectly for the primarily collegiate audience. This probably has to do with the fact that he himself took a while to find himself and his culture with all its beauty – something that most of the crowd is dealing with themselves. Singh was hilarious and at the same time critical of the South Asian culture (“South Asians need racism”) with his routine. Most of his material focused on the ‘Indian-American youth’s social construct’ and he delivered his punches with great panache. I particularly loved how he’s able to go smoothly from an energetic, passionate and jumping patriot to a stool-top knowledge dispenser. The high point of the act, without a shred of doubt, was the finale. The “Indian gangster’s civil disobedience” and “photocopy story” added up to make the best five minutes of the entire show.

Four and a half years after performing at the Indian Cultural Association’s Jhalak 2005, Paul Varghese took the stage as the ultimate act of the night to resounding applause that welcomed him back to UT. Varghese is one of Dallas’ hottest comedians. Indians at the Improv, Comedy Central, Last Comic Standing – you name it and Paul has been there, done that. His jokes early on rested entirely on the inanities of the adult first-generation Indians in America. Freely using his own family as scapegoat, Varghese moodily painted on our minds the social expectations that South Asians face while trying to preserve their identity. At the same time, a light bashing of both brown and white people made for uninterrupted, laugh-generating comedy. Things that stood out for me were the “ptch equals bitch” (mostly because I use it myself when I’m back in India) and the “Kia-Shia-Gonorrhea” quips.

By the end of the show, the theater was totally packed – a mark of success for the organizers. Aziz finally presented the closing note thanking the sponsors before bringing the show to an end. However, the culmination of the show was only the start of the second official FOI-2010 party, and the attendees couldn’t wait to get downtown and chill with the talented comics who lit up the stage on a memorable evening.

Photo Courtesy: Amirah Islam