Exclusive! Comedian Jaspreet Singh: "I want to create something that lasts long and holds relevance even after several years."

Jaspreet Singh is one of the most sought-after stand-up comedians in the country who is known for his sense of humour, sharp observation and audience engagement skills. After honing his skills for seven years in the field of stand-up comedy, the artist has finally released his first stand-up special, Koi Load Nahi on Amazon Prime Video. In an interview with OTTplay, the comedian talks about why it took so long for his special, his process and his dream of writing a longer format show or a film. Excerpts from the interview, translated from Hindi:

Your special, Koi Load Nahi, which got you a standing ovation from the viewers is now out on Amazon Prime. How was the response to the show on OTT been like?

Whatever response I have got, it's been really good. Many people have been able to relate to it. Many people have seen the show live as well since I have been touring for more than 2.5 years. I am getting great responses. I am yet to watch the show on Prime. I did watch it before it went live on the platform but I would like to watch it again, connecting to my TV.

This is your first stand-up special. Why did it take so long?

The art form takes time. It's not like I would start getting to do the shows the day I start doing stand-up. Usually, people take three to four years to do a one-hour stand-up show itself. I was lucky enough to be able to do my one-hour standup in three years of my comedy career and tour with it. Itna time to kam se kam lagta he hai. I toured with my show in 2017 for 1.5 years. After that, I uploaded different clips from that tour on YouTube. I could have done a special back then itself but I think an artist should take the time that's needed to create a special. I had decided not to upload that on OTT since my craft wasn't developed enough or staged enough to be able to engage the audience for that long. The difference between a stand-up show on YouTube and a special is that the people have to watch a special in its entirety. It needs skills to be able to make that long an engaging watch. The aim is to get the audience to watch it in one go. I am lucky I have been able to do it in 7 years. Many don't get to do that either. I am glad that I finally could do it. It isn't that late nor early as well. It happened at the right time in my career.

How did you prepare the material for it? How long did you work on it?

I started writing material for this stand-up special in 2018. I have been developing the content for over four years. I had written some before I was touring for this show. I have also been adding some content while on the tour and I improved and worked on some that I had written over the time. As we do more stage time, the material also improves. I toured with this special for 2.5 years at a stretch except for a few months due to the pandemic. But whenever the COVID-19 induced lockdown rules were easing out and around 50 or 25 -30 people were being allowed at a venue, I used to do the shows. That's the best way to test your material. I am lucky that I got enough stage time. I have done 180 shows for this special, which takes about 2 to 2.5 years. Karte karte, material ban gaya.

Where did you record the show?

We recorded the show at Laugh Tour, a comedy club, which opened only last year in Dwarka, Delhi. This is one of the best comedy clubs in the country as it has good acoustics and light. And that's what makes a good comedy club. This is the first special ever recorded in that comedy club and the team was also quite excited. They have created a great space for comedy.

How do you test your jokes?

I like to test my material with a live audience. Many comedians prefer to test their jokes with their family members or friends. I sometimes discuss the idea with my wife but I prefer to test jokes with a live audience. I like to take that traditional route of going to open mics kyunki mujhe lagta hai koi bhi comedian open mics ke bina nahi ban sakta. Open mics are the only way to become a good comic. Now I am writing a new material which I will test at open mics in 5 or 10 minutes slots. My process is slow and steady. It's the same process that I followed at the start of my career as I need to write something new again that can develop into a one-hour show.

Say, if I am making t-shirts or any product, I would first test them with the common man who will consume them. So, you test your final product with those who consume it.

In your special, you joked that comedians tweet that the show has been cancelled due to 'unavoidable circumstances' when their tickets are not getting sold. Have you ever had to face that situation in real life?

It is a joke but yes, it happens too. When tickets are not getting sold enough, you sometimes cancel the show as you need to travel for a day, spending on flights for a show with less crowd. So you tweet saying that the show is cancelled due to unavoidable circumstances. I said it because it is funny only. It is not always true that the show gets cancelled due to these reasons. Sometimes, you fall sick or have a personal emergency and sometimes, political parties get your shows cancelled. The reason can be anything. My job is to make these situations funny. I have also had to cancel the show once as not many tickets were sold. I am doing it for my passion but the producer looks at the business aspect. Unko sochna padta hai ke main itna paisa daal rahu hu aur itni tickets nahi biki, to koi fayda nahi mera. So it is better to refund people. I am sure many might hesitate to talk about this. Par hum besharam hai, hamare saath jo hota hai, hum wo bol dete hai. Despite all these things, if I have made it to Amazon Prime, it means I am doing it right.

You also joke about how everyone dreams of winning an award and have an acceptance speech already in their mind. So, have you prepared your speech for an award too?

I believe every person would have made up an acceptance speech in their mind. In our minds, we consider ourselves famous celebrities. In our childhood, we aspire to be a rockstar, a singer or actor, or a hero. It was just a thought while I was in that zone. During childhood, while travelling alone on a bus or train, I used to talk to myself. We often think in case we receive an award in office, we will say this.

So what will you say in your acceptance speech?

I am a very simple person. I will just say thank you for having me. Do not forget to have fun in life. Koi Load Nahi.

I had also read that you filled out a slam book in class 6 where you wrote that you wanted to be a comedian against the dream section on it. Is it true?

It's true. I was in class 6 or 7. I had written that in someone's slam book. I never thought then that I would actually become a comedian. But I always used to make jokes and people used to laugh. I am really happy that my childhood dream, by chance, got fulfilled somehow.

I became a software engineer as in many households like mine, we were brought up with the mindset that having a regular job is really important. I used to study well since childhood to get a good job as well. Since engineering is one of the easiest ones, I thought of taking it up. Back then in our small town, we didn't know of any other career options as well. But now people are more aware and they are starting stand-up comedy immediately after college as well to follow their passion. I studied to get a job and I worked for 7 years. It was a normal phase of my life. I had quit because my videos were working and I wanted to take up stand-up comedy full time.

So how did you get back to comedy?

I didn't even have an idea about stand-up comedy. I didn't know that it existed in India. I got to know about it only in October 2014 and that's when I decided to at least try it once. I researched to find how to do stand-up comedy. It took a month or two to find where live stand-up takes place in Delhi NCR as I used to live there then. I learned about it from fellow comedians and event companies about the process. I found the format, in itself, to be very interesting. It comes naturally to me.

Considering current scenarios where people usually get offended easily, do sometimes worry or hesitate to do a joke thinking it could hurt someone's sentiments?

By nature, every joke is offensive to someone. There is no joke that cannot offend anybody. I make jokes about my dad and log mujhe gaali dete hai, bolte hai tujhe sharam nahi aati, apne dad pe joke kar raha hai. Mere dad ko agar dikat nahi hai to tumhe kya ho sakti hai. I don't hesitate to tell a joke. My content is not too political. You should have a conviction in the topic you are talking about, only then you should talk about it. People should speak their minds until they have the right. People dislike and comment on the videos and it is up to you how you want to react to them.

You also started a show Jassi Doesn't Like It on YouTube. Your first episode was about Sikhs in Bollywood and how Punjabis are stereotyped in the movies. It is an interesting concept and show. How did that happen? And when and what will the next episode be on?

Thank you so much. I didn't know you have seen that and most people talk about the stand-up special only. I never thought about it as a series. I planned only for one episode, Sikhs in Bollywood, in 2019. I just had the thought running in my mind for several years. Ab maine socha ke mere paas platform hai jaha log mujhe sun sakte hai. It is important to hold a certain position so that people can listen to you and maybe give them a new perspective to look at things, without being offensive. I made one episode and later, I realised I can do more with my train of thought. So I started doing on different topics that impact me. I don't plan the number of episodes beforehand. Whenever I feel like it, I create it. The day I get a topic that I am convinced about and can add some jokes to it, I then do the episode. I made another episode on friends on the internet only, about the internet behaviour of people. I had made another episode on how we are consuming a lot of content during the pandemic as the apps keep notifying us about them. We end up watching even if we don't want to. I also make content but I would like the audience to watch them out of their free will. Many people related to it and famous artists also messaged me. I picked this topic because it was personally affecting me, I didn't think about the views or anything. I didn't want to keep it in mind and wanted to let it out.

So would you say the idea for it was born out of frustration?

Not frustration. After a point, things get repetitive and they should stop. It is not a rant. I talk about my thoughts and add jokes too. I am unable to add these thoughts to my stand-up and hence, I made a different show. It has jokes, research and statistics as well. I think people should know about these things and how they are viewing them. I think sometimes, it is important to give a new perspective to people, not to make them think as you do but to give them another way to look at things. Unko lage ke mere alawa bhi aur tareeke hai sochne ka. That is the only purpose.

Many comedians now also write web series and films. Do you also plan to write one soon?

The series Afsos is written by one of my friends and I got inspired and motivated when I learned that people like me are only writing such great web series and films. Writing a web series and film is a different skill set. I'll take some time for it. But I really want to write something, which is a long format and a non-stand-up. It is my dream to write. I am trying to write a short film and if I am able to do so, I'll then move to a longer format. But it involves a different thought process and it will take time. If you hurry it, it won't come out well. I'll do it only when I am convinced that it is good. And I want to create something that is long-lasting and holds relevance even after several years.

What would your short film be on?

I am trying to do a short film and hope I can create it this year. It is non-comedy. It will have dark humour. I am not sure if it will be a short or a longer format. I am not sure about how it will translate on the screen and its screen time at the moment. Once I am done writing, I will talk to some experts to understand how to make the film then. Then I'll have a better understanding.