Nepotism is a hotly contested topic in the film industry, a regular subject of intense debates and online discourse. It’s an accusation that Aarya Babbar, who hails from a highly prolific acting family in the Hindi film and theatre industry, has often faced. But instead of indignant self-defense, he’s learned to take the “nepo baby” taunts on the chin. He’s even got a sense of humour about it, as suggested by the tagline for his debut hour-long solo show Seasonal Actor: “Kyuki nepotism har kisi ke kaam nahi aata (because nepotism doesn’t work for everyone).“
In the show, Babbar—who made his acting debut in the 2002 film Ab Ke Baras—talks about the struggles he’s faced during his career and how he’s survived in the industry. “Sab ko lagta hai yeh koi golden spoon ke saath paida hua,” he tells DeadAnt during a video call. “But in the hour I tell people mera spoon hardly golden tha. Aur aakhir mein they are like, ‘Yeh toh apna hi banda hai.'”
Babbar performed the first show of Seasonal Actor on 21 April. Since then, he’s done a bunch of shows across the country, slowly getting used to the craft (he’s always been used to the stage), rediscovering himself in the process and falling in love with the performing arts all over again. We caught up with the newly minted standup comedian to understand how this new chapter in his life began, what the journey has been like—from doing open mics to performing a solo hour—and his standup comedy goals. His biggest one? Making someone laugh so hard they suffer a heart attack. More on that ahead.
Your family is deeply involved in theatre and is closely associated with the Hindi film industry. You’ve been part of a number of blockbuster hits. So how did standup comedy come into the mix?
Honestly, I always enjoyed writing comedy a lot. And like you said, I’ve grown up in a theatre background because of my family. My mother has her own group too. So while we were growing up, we read a lot of plays and novels. Out of everything I read at that point, my favourite playwright was Neil Simon. He was fantastic at writing comedy and known for his slapstick writing. That was where it all started.
Then I wrote a novel called My fiancée, me & #IFu**ed Up (released in 2015). That was a kind of comedy. But standup came into the picture only a year-and-half ago. I was obviously always inclined towards the stage. At the time, my wife, who’s into poetry, used to go for a lot of open mics. And I used to keep pulling her leg ki kya tum shayari karti rehti ho. And what is all this snapping your fingers. So she told me that if I think it’s so easy, I should go to an open mic and perform comedy.
So I just went for it, and now here we are.
How was the your first open mic experience?
I really enjoyed it, yaar. It was a lot of fun. It was also the instant gratification that appealed to me. The actor in me was craving that validation and gratification. Then I think I just got very hungry for that. I wanted the claps and the laughs. It’s all in the moment. You don’t need critique. Instantly you realise whether your material is working or not. I just started enjoying the process and it’s been like a domino effect since then. Things have just flowed very smoothly.
You’ve been on the lineup with lots of other seasoned comedians. What was that experience like? Were they quick to give you feedback?
I performed with a bunch of comedians in Mumbai and Delhi and it has always been a great experience. It’s great to listen to them and grasp onto what they’re saying in the green room. Once the open mic process started, my entire thought process became that of a student. I was looking at it from the point of view that I’m learning this craft from scratch. So I would try to learn from everyone—even comics who were performing at an open mic for the first time.
I would also never leave an open mic after my performance was done. I would prefer to sit and listen to what the others have to say. Because I really think it makes a big difference. My other comedian friends would leave for a spot somewhere else but my theatre background would make me think galat hai yeh. I expect people to sit and watch my performance, so I should extend that same courtesy. That also helped me.
What is the biggest difference you have noticed between acting and performing standup comedy?
The biggest difference—and it took me three months to understand this, and I’m still learning—is that when I’m acting, I’m getting paid to not be myself. When I’m performing standup, I only have to be myself. That is also the biggest challenge for me. For almost 15-16 years I’ve been paid to forget who I am. So, I’m not worried about being relaxed on stage and all that. I’m always relaxed on stage. I know how to connect with the audience and throw my energy at them. For me, the main hurdle has been pinning down what my real voice is. And making sure that my voice is authentic enough to be relatable to the audience. Because if I’m putting up a persona, people can see through it in no time.
Another major thing that comedy has done for me is reinvented my mind. Acting used to do that for me at a point but eventually it became like a day-to-day job. So, through standup comedy I feel like I’ve rediscovered myself after quite some time. And that is a very different kind of happiness that is difficult to put into words.
A fear of bombing is something that a lot of comedians struggle with. How do you deal with it if a joke of yours doesn’t land? Do you think your experience as an actor gives you an upper-hand at dealing with it?
I just address it if a joke doesn’t land (laughs). A fellow comic once told me, “If you feel something in the room, address it. The audience will accept you even more.” And that is something I’ve always done. But yes, acting, and mainly film acting, helps me overcome something that a lot of comedians struggle—which is not caring. If someone gets up and leaves or if someone is heckling or if an audience member isn’t laughing as much as the others, it doesn’t bother me.
Because in Hindi films, they’ll make you do anything. They’ll make you dance in the middle of the street, make you do foolish things in front of hundreds of people. And in that process you hear so much that eventually your brain just cuts those things out. You only end up focusing on the positives. So, if in a room of 20, only 10 are laughing, I’ll only focus on the those people. The others will just fade out for me.
Can you tell us a little about your show ‘Seasonal Actor’?
It’s basically a take on being born into a dysfunctional Bollywood family and somehow making it functional. I talk about the dimensions and relationships I have within my family—with father, with both my mothers, my siblings, my wife, my pet dog… everything. Then I touch upon surviving in Bollywood. My debut film Ab Ke Baras, in which I have two births. Ek bhi janam lekin bacha nahi paya (laughs). Where nepotism is going today… such films are being made nowadays that Ab Ke Baras is looking like a super-hit. Jai Archies.
Then I go on to talk about films that the audience really connected with, like Ready. I share some anecdotes about what it was like to work with Salman [Khan] sir. What kind of madness used to happen on set. Basically, the hour is a Bollywood tadka and looking at it through a comedic lens.
How long did you take to write this material? And where was your head at before the first show on 21 April?
It took me almost nine months to create the whole hour. To be very honest, I had a lot comics and friends say that they’ll help me write it. And I won’t lie, it was quite tempting to be like let them write it and I’ll perform. Kise pata chalega? But I was like, the fun is in going up on stage every day and trying to nail your jokes. If you bomb, it’s your trauma to deal with and if you kill then it’s your win. So yes, to reiterate, every joke is written by me (laughs).
Coming to the feeling before first show, or actually the four weeks leading up to it, was exciting. And the show got a great response. You know what? I knew on the day that I was going to kill it. I was visualising giving somebody a heart attack because of how much they’re laughing. It didn’t happen. But I’m hoping it happens eventually. That doesn’t sound right.
Now that you’ve got a taste of standup comedy, do you think you’ll marry the two crafts in your repertoire and try your hand at comedic acting? And if you could play any iconic comedy role, which one would it be?
I would really love to do comedy acting. Hopefully something will come along. But speaking of iconic comedy roles… that’s a tough one. There are such good films. I’ll give you three off the top of my head. As someone who grew up in the ’90s, I would definitely love to do Andaz Apna Apna. Any role in that film. There are just such great characters.
Besides that, I would love to play Peter Sellers’ character from Blake Edward’s Pink Panther movies. And another one is Jim Carrey’s character in Dumb & Dumber. What an iconic film.
What are your future plans with standup comedy? Do you see yourself sticking to the art form?
I’ll be very candid with you. This is the only thing in my life that I did not plan at all. And I’ve embraced it in such a beautiful way. Every time I get up on stage, I feel like I have wings. I really feel elated. Everything that has happened during this journey has happened by chance and I want it to be that way. But one thing is for certain—I want to keep going up on stage. Whether it’s for an open mic, for my show Seasonal Actor or for some new material I’m writing. That’s all I want to do. Where it will lead me, is up to fate. Comedy has made me immensely happy and I want to continue to be in this space.
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