Where's the LOL factor?

What’s our life without some humour? A dull, drab and monotonous cycle which repeats itself every Monday.
As the saying goes, comedy is the curry of life, darlings! And Tamil television seems to be a rather bland affair. Boy, aren’t we tired of the done-to-death ‘themes’ like mother-in-law v/s daughterin-law , amma sentiments and the endless racial stereotypes (the can’tmarry-if-you’re-dark sorts).
Santhanam made viewers ROFL with his rib-tickling stunts on TV shows like Sagalai vs Ragalai and the cult Lollu Sabha.Do we have comedians like these making a mark on television nowadays?
The TV channels have replaced comedy serials with reality shows, which have positioned themselves comfortably on top of the good ol’ laugh factor. It is disturbing to realize that we have only a handful of original comedy existing on TV now. Mostly, it is a compilation of comedy scenes from movies that are aired endlessly.
Now, here’s a list of comedy shows on the English channels How I Met Your Mother, Two And A Half Men, Big Bang Theory, Modern Family, 30 Rock, Glee, Community, Mr Sunshine, Episodes, Archer, The Simpsons and Family Guy.
And, the Hindi channels aren’t doing bad Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah, Papad Pol, Shahbuddin Rathod Ki Rangeen Duniya, Sajan Re Jhoot Mat Bolo, Mr & Mrs Tendulkar, Ring Rong Ring, Ammaji Ki Galli and Gutter Goo. Now, how many comedy shows (currently airing) can you think of in Tamil? The recently-launched Kings Of Comedy, Maama Maaple, Comedy Colony, and the list ends there.
So, is there no scope for comedy anymore? Disagrees actor Mohan Ram, TV serials are driven by commercials and this has certain drawbacks. Airing TV serials on weekdays and reality shows on weekends is considered a safe bet by both channels and advertisers.
Women form the core ‘afternoon audience’ which explains why we have melodrama and tearjerkers for post-lunch sessions. What is evident in these serials is that there is not even occasional humour. It’s just drama and tears. Mohan Ram throws a question, Don’t women like humour?
Lack of writers seems to be the biggest question mark for comedy. To churn out original pieces of comedy day in and day out, we need a bank of writers, says Mohan Ram.
Comedy is yet to evolve into a genre on Tamil TV, says Rishi, host of Deala No Deala. Rishi explains that the whole understanding of comedy in Tamil is that which is slapstick and loud. Whenever there is a deviation from this format, there is criticism sprouting from everywhere, laments Rishi. He reveals that he faced criticism when he attempted a Friends-style sitcom in Tamil and adds that prejudices regarding comedy must disappear.
(Rehna Abdul Kareem)