Previewing the festival

India’s stand-up scene may still be in its relative infancy, but its biggest names are fast becoming global players. Here are ten comics from the subcontinent heading to Edinburgh this Fringe.

1. Vir Das

Last year, Vir Das – one of the biggest Indian stand-ups there is–  won an International Emmy for for his Netflix stand-up special Landing, sharing the comedy accolade with Derry Girls. Now he unveils his latest show, The Fool, described as being ‘for all the people who don’t have their shit together, and all the idiots who missed the big chapter on adulting’. His show’s one of several being promoted by the Soho Theatre, which has been at the forefront in introducing Indian acts to the UK and which first brought Das to these shores in 2014.

Pleasance Dome, 8pm, July 31 to August 25

2. Kanan Gill: What Is This?

Kanan Gill, pictured, is a big deal back home. He has a couple of Bollywood films under his belt and several stand-up specials including Yours Sincerely, Kanan Gill, released on Netflix in 2020. Chortle first saw this slick, charming and funny show at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival earlier this year, where it was deservedly nominated for the big prize – and you can read our review here. 

 Pleasance Courtyard, 5.40pm, July 31 to August 25

3. Urooj Ashfaq: Oh No!

Last year’s Edinburgh Comedy Award best newcomer winner reprises the hour which scooped her the title. The autobiographical Oh No!, which turns her psychology degree on herself, was her first show in English having established herself on the Mumbai comedy scene

Assembly Roxy, 9.35pm, August 20 to 25

She also has a work in progress show at the same venue at 1.30pm from the 16th to  25th. 

4. Sumukhi Suresh: Hoemonal

Suresh was once called ‘India's Tina Fey’, which is a pretty decent label to get. She created and starred in the 2017 Amazon Prime series Pushpavalli, whose cast included Ashfaq, and, again like Asfhaq, has been a host of the platform’s stand-up competition Comicstaan. Now she makes her Edinburgh stand-up debut. 

Pleasance Dome, 9.40pm, July 31 to August 11

5. Rahul Subramanian: Who Are You?

Mumbai-based stand-up Rahul Subramanian last year released India's first crowdwork special Rahul Talks To People – available (in Hindi) on Amazon Prime, alongside his 2018 special Kal Main Udega. But with this Edinburgh debut, he wants to dispel any myth that such skills make him in any way a confident person. 

Assembly George Square, 6.25pm, July 31 to August 25

6. Anirban Dasgupta: Polite Provocation

Like all the above, this is another Soho Theatre presentation. In Polite Provocation Kolkata-born, Mumbai-based Dasgupta is inspired by the birth of his daughter to go look back over previous generations of his family, back to the days of Indian rule. And his title, he says, ‘is a nice definition of what comedy stands for in general’.

Pleasance Courtyard, 7.25pm, July 31 to August 25

7. Joshua Bethania: Coming Home

A London-based Indian now, with the 2022 So You Think You're Funny? winner offering an immigrant's suggestions at how to fix the UK, inspired by how his life has always been influenced by England. His debut will include what he calls ‘the contractually-obligated topic’ of colonialism

Gilded Balloon Patter House, 5.20pm, July 31 to August 26

 8. 60-Minute Comedy Tour of the World: The Local Immigrant

Prateek Jajoo’s immigrant journey took him from a small Indian village to being a banker in New York – where he got active in stand-up –  to where he is now, living a Berlin hippie life. His Edinburgh show is described as a ‘cultural joyride breaking free from conservative traditions and capitalism.’

Laughing Horse @ The Raging Bull, 7.25pm, August 1 to 26 

He’s also co-hosting the gameshow 4 Comedy Masterminds with Berlin-based Romanian comic Mihai Tartara at the same venue at 4pm.

 9. Prev Reddy is a Triple Threat

Reddy – who stakes a claim to being South Africa's first Indian queer comic – achieved success in his home country with his sassy alter-ego Aunty Shamilla. However he last year decided to retire the hit character and move into storytelling stand-up, saying ‘I think it’s time to step into my own’.And now he makes his Edinburgh Fringe debut, with this short run.

Arthur Conan Doyle Centre, 3pm, August 6 to 9.

10. Sid Singh: American Coloniser

Indian-American Singh – a human rights lawyer as well as a stand-up - offers an alternative to the narrative of brave and wise ancestors overcoming the hardships of imperialism in this new show, instead delving into his ‘murky family history’ of thieves and traitors, who colonised India before the British and constantly switched their allegiances enabling them to control five Indian villages while moonlighting as the secret police for the richest man in the world.

Just the Tonic at Cabaret Voltaire, 5pm, August 1 to 25

He’s also reprising his 2023 show, Table For One, at The Counting House at 1.15pm

Published: 16 Jul 2024