Nowadays, it wouldn’t be hard to find a female artiste in a stand-up comic line-up. That wasn’t the case a few years back.
Comic Neeti Palta, who has been part of the stand-up comedy scene for long in India, said that weird excuses came her way when she was getting booked for a show.
Once a female manager of a show told Palta’s then-manager that Palta should charge less since she wouldn’t be sharing the room with a male comic. The manager of the show wanted to accommodate two comics in one room to save cost, which would not have been possible in case of one male and female comic.
While stupid excuses became part of life, Palta said that acceptability initially was less.
‘Whenever I failed, the reaction was women aren’t funny’
“Every time I was in the line-up, people would think I am the master of the ceremony. Plus, back then, there was a lot of burden. In a line-up, if a male comic fails, the reaction would be the guy wasn’t funny. But whenever I failed, the reaction was that women aren’t funny. And my thought was don’t fail my entire gender. Tell me I sucked,” said Palta.
But now both participation and acceptability have increased.
Shows like Comicstaan help
“The digital medium helped in spreading the word. But I think OTT (over-the- top) platforms have done a bigger service because suddenly you have shows showcasing artistes like Comicstaan where females are as good males,” she said.
Shreeja Chaturvedi concurs. “The Internet has played a major role in creating opportunities for any comedian or content creator – irrespective of identity. The sheer reach of digital media opens up a flood of opportunities for everyone, including women. Every voice has a place and a more or less equal shot at being amplified.”
Digital definitely played an important role in Chaturvedi’s life. She got a lot of recognition after her participation in Amazon Prime Video's Comicstaan.
This is why both Palta and Chaturvedi say the scenario has now changed from what it used to be earlier. “Acceptability has gone up phenomenally. We are getting set comedy audiences. There are fans who like the work of female comics. And nowadays, females in a (stand-up comedy) line-up is a given,” said Palta.
There is pay parity here
In addition, both said when it comes to pay, it remains equal for both male and female comics, and it is determined by social media numbers and the comic's talent.
However, both Palta and Chaturvedi said that the number of women signing up to try comedy is low, compared to male comics. The number is increasing, though, they said.
“Globally also, the number of female comics is less. Plus, in India, the comedy scene is so new. As the space is developing, comedy is becoming an acceptable art form. The ratio will probably remain skewed towards men because it is also a comfort-level thing. A stand-up comic has a different lifestyle, especially from a safety point of view,” said Palta.
Adding to this, Chaturvedi said: "One challenge, which is more or less any female’s constant struggle, is safety. Due to the nature of this profession, and mostly the timings, one of the biggest challenges becomes making your folks at home comfortable with the profession. While it’s safe most of the times, there will be this stray show or venue that makes you want to get out of there as soon as possible.”
Stereotyping of female comics a challenge
Another challenge that still remains is the stereotyping of female comics. Palta said that if a female comic talks about bras, boobs or periods, she is stereotyped.
“Why are men trying to decide what topics a woman should talk about? A man can talk about his break-up, wife and that’s okay. But if a woman talks about eve-teasing or being felt up the wrong way, you stereotype our comedy. Plus, people will find ways to link any subject to those topics (bras, boobs and periods). Like I spoke about men peeing in public, and there was a comment saying a female comic is talking about male penises,” said Palta.
“I had a dream that in a Hindi film, I am the gunda (villain) and I am saying --ma ka doodh piya hai toh bahar aa (if you have the courage, come out). And someone says, ohh, look! a female is talking about boobs again.”
‘Work on your sense of humour’
And this is why Palta’s advice to upcoming female comics is to have thick skin. “Work on your sense of humour but work more on having a thick skin. You will get bad reviews, you will get stereotyped a lot more than male comics," she said.
While challenges remain, both Palta and Chaturvedi think that now is the best time to enter the stand-up comedy space in India.
“If you haven’t tried stand-up comedy yet and you want to, then my only advice is to go get on stage as soon as you can. Every other learning will follow thereon,” said Chaturvedi.
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