Indian television has entertained viewers and tickled their funny bone with shows like ‘Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi’, ‘Shriman Shrimati’, ‘Office Office’, ‘Tu Tu Main Main’ and ‘Shararat- Thoda Jadu Thodi Nazakat’.
Have Indian comedy shows reached saturation point?
Indian television has entertained viewers and tickled their funny bone with shows like ‘Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi’, ‘Shriman Shrimati’, ‘Office Office’, ‘Tu Tu Main Main’ and ‘Shararat- Thoda Jadu Thodi Nazakat’. Then came a slump till ‘The Great Laughter Challenge’ redefined the genre Today there’s an overdose of comedy shows. Is it boom time for such shows or has it already reached a saturation point?
Shekhar Suman, who is a judge on ‘Laughter Challenge’, rues the fact that we have no knowledge of humour; “The entire concept of stand-up comedy is abused in India. Imitating actors and making fun is not humour. The presentation should be powerful enough to bring in a punch.”
Stand-up comedian Raju Srivastava feels that that the current shows have made the concept boring. He says, “Being funny is a very serious business. It is getting repetitive and if it continues, there is every possibility of losing out on novelty.”
Producer Rajiv Mehra has achieved many a success in this genre. His first show was ‘Zabaan Sambhal Ke’ and has also made ‘Office Office’, ‘Shararat..’, ‘Kissa Kursi Ka’, ‘Nhok Jhok’ and ‘Khatta Meeta’, amongst others. He says that comedy is all about action and reaction; “The humour is introduced either through the conflict and emotions in soaps. The tension can be broken by a good line or the right expression. However, there is a lot of trash that pretends to be comedy. Actors and writers are very important. The key is to build up momentum and carry audiences throughout the entire duration of the show.”
On the sudden influx of comedy shows, Johnny Lever says, “Comedy is an art which is extremely difficult to deliver. This is a trend and will soon fade off.” .
Despite the many desi comedy shows currently on air, most youngsters prefer watching foreign shows like ‘Friends’, ‘Sienfeld’ and the like. Indian Idol anchor Mini Mathur says, “Indian comedy serials are seriously not funny and very me-too in their approach.”
Finally, comic actor Satish Shah sums up, “The timing, direction, script and team’s enthusiasm are important ingredients to get a comedy serial right.”
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