'For Indian comedy': Vir Das wins for International Emmy Award 2023

Vir Das, 44, does not shy away from speaking about important issues.

Stand-up comic and actor Vir Das’s Netflix special “Vir Das Landing” won the International Emmy Award 2023. He shares the award with "Derry Girls" in the comedy category.

This is his first win in the segment and the second time he was nominated. Bagging the International Emmy award for the best comedy series is "an incredible honor that feels like a dream," said Das in a statement.

"Winning an Emmy for 'Vir Das: Landing' in the 'Comedy Category' is not just a milestone for me but for Indian comedy as a whole. It's heartening to see 'Vir Das: Landing' resonate globally, thanks to Netflix, Aakash Sharma and Reg Tigerman who made it special."

Actors Shefali Shah and Jim Sarbh too were nominated in acting categories for their shows "Delhi Crime" and "Rocket Boys" respectively. While Shah lost the title to Mexican star Carla Souza of "La Caida (Dive)", Sarbh also couldn't convert his best performance by an actor nomination into a win.

Shah posted a photo of Vir Das holding the trophy. "You won this for all of us," she wrote on Instagram Stories.

"For India.For Indian comedy. Every breath, every word. Thank you to the @iemmys for this incredible honour," Das wrote on Instagram and X (formerly), sharing a photo of him holding the trophy.

Apart from “Vir Das Landing” and the third season of "Derry Girls" from the UK, the other nominees the comedy category are "El Encargado" from Argentina and second season of French show "Le Flambeau".

Television and film producer Ektaa R Kapoor was honoured with the Directorate Award for her "trailblazing career and impact on the Indian television landscape".

The International Emmy Awards ceremony is being held in New York City.

Vir Das, 44, who has also dabbled in Bollywood, does not shy away from speaking about various issues. Two years ago, he was at the receiving end of social media backlash for his monologue, “Two Indias”. In the monologue, he had touched upon various topics, including the farm protests, the battle against COVID-19, the duality in response to women, particularly rape, and the crackdown on comedians.