Amit Tandon has been performing comedy for over a decade. 13 years to be precise. Even with all these years of experience under his belt, the comedian still feels the pressure of writing quality material and constantly evolving, he wrote in an Instagram post. He particularly felt that burden while doing trial shows of his latest show Halwa.
“I have never done so many trials of a show as this one,” he wrote in the post. “Recorded every performance and listened to it before the next one.” In the process, he rediscovered the joy of performing in smaller rooms and constantly rewriting material.
We caught the show in January this year, when Tandon had just started testing out Halwa. His hour has evolved a lot since then, he says, and the comedian is finally hitting the road for a 10-city tour kicking off this Saturday (27 July) in Ahmedabad. He told us all about his latest show, how he workshops his material and dealing with the nerves after all these years in comedy. Tandon also has some words of advice for aspiring comedians. Read through!
What’s the show about?
This show is completely based on my marriage and relationship. It’s largely about being married for 22 years and what changes have happened along the way. I explore various aspects of the relationship and how they have evolved over two decades.
Why are you calling the show ‘Halwa’?
I didn’t want to completely reveal what the show was about with the title. The idea was to make people curious. We went through a lot of options and we finally decided that Halwa was the most appropriate name for the hour. It makes people think, “Aisa kya hai iss show mein?” It also fits the theme of the show well. And you’v seen the show so you are aware of how the show ends. That was the main reason behind the name. So yeah, the idea was to not talk about the show in the title.
Just today you put out a post saying the pressure of writing good material never goes away even after years of performing. How do you deal with that?
There are 2-3 things that I do. I write my first set of material and take it on stage to see what the audience is vibing with. Another thing I do is discuss my material within the family—largely with my wife and a little with my kids. And finally, I speak with some of my comedian friends. I tell them this is how I’m envisioning the hour. I actually sit down with them and take inputs from comedians who I like to speak with. For this show, I sat with Zakir [Khan] and told him this is the flow of the show, this is how I am doing it and this is what I’m trying to say with it. I put it down on paper and see how they interpret it which is often more interesting. So, first it’s about going up on stage, recording the show and listening to how it’s going. Then it’s about discussing it with people. And finally, it’s about figuring out the order in which you want to perform the different sets in. I also often take a small break between trial shows and then go up on stage to look at it from a fresh perspective. A lot of new observations come out of it.
How much has the show evolved since we saw it in January?
It has changed by almost 60-70 percent since January. Both in terms of the jokes and what I’m trying to say with them.
You also said that you’ve done the most number of trials for this particular show. Is there a performance that stands out for you?
Actually, every show is its own experience. But I will say that the most testing shows were the ones where the audience size was small. I did one show at Spades in Mumbai where the seating capacity is only 15. But even out of those 15, eight people who bought tickets didn’t turn up and I performed for an audience of seven. When you perform for such a small crowd, you realise what is really working and what isn’t. Because with 100 people in the audience, even if 25 people laugh you think that the joke is working. But when only three people laugh out of seven, you know that something needs reworking. So that show really stood out for me.
Do you perform at open mics to test out material before putting up trial shows?
Honestly, I do very few open mics. I generally put up trial shows. That’s mainly because my audience is slightly older compared to other comedians’. At open mics what happens is that the audience is usually in the age-range of 18-25. If I measure the response for my jokes based on their reaction, it won’t be accurate because they won’t get my references. I speak about being married for two decades, how acidity is my biggest problem… they don’t connect to that. So what I do is, I write a rough one-hour show and directly take it to trials. I do very few open mics in the middle.
How many cities are you doing on this tour? Do you plan on taking it overseas as well?
Right now we have 10-12 cities lined up. But currently I’m not looking at taking this particular show overseas because I still have to tour with my previous show Hamare Zamane Mein in the United States. Right now the plan is to perform that show in the US in September and October this year and then again in February and March, 2025. Simultaneously I’ll be doing Halwa in India. And then next year, some time around May I’ll put up international dates for Halwa.
As someone who has been doing comedy for over a decade and seen the scene evolve, what advice would you give to upcoming comedians?
One of the most evident changes that has happened since I started performing is that YouTube videos, shorts and Instagram reels have become an integral part of being a comedian. But I would tell any newcomer not to take the pressure of writing for Instagram or YouTube. A lot of comedians are doing that nowadays where they write for reels. They think do reel chal jayegi aur fir hum ticket bechenge. But in my opinion, writing three minutes of material and then performing hour-long sets is not feasible in the long run. I think you should treat standup as a long-form piece of art. We have examples of people who have done that and are immensely successful like Abhishek Upmanyu and Anubhav Singh Bassi. They have hardly ever released reels and they are still at the top of their game right now. So, I would suggest that you try to stay true to the art form and bring your own stories to the stage. Don’t try to replicate what’s happening in the market because usko dekhna hai toh 50 aur options hain logon ke paas. Be yourself on stage. That’s what works for people.
You have also been actively writing for streaming platforms and television. Do you have any projects in the pipeline?
I have a bunch of projects that have been written but currently the OTT space is going through a lot of changes. If you look at the industry, many people have been laid off, leadership positions are changing and a lot of projects have been put on hold. In another 4-5 months I think it’ll be the right time to start pitching projects and start building on them. I have 5-7 scripts ready and we are already talking to people in the market but it’s a fairly slow time.
You can get your tickets for Halwa here.
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