Tough to pull off being vulgar and clever at the same time: Radhika Vaz

Stand up comedy, freedom of speech, and using vulgarity in humour, all came together at a freewheeling session featuring comedian Radhika Vaz and Radio Mirchi’s Akash Banerjee at the Times Lit Fest Delhion Sunday. The audience participated throughout, posing questions about everything from animated television series South Park to the law and order situation in the country.
Last year's Bollywood “Roast” from comedy troupe AIB was still fresh in the audience’s minds. Answering a question about the place of vulgarity in comedy, Vaz said, it was important to give primacy to the point being made through the use of cusswords, rather than the expletives themselves. “The crossroads of being really clever and really vulgar is a favourite of mine. It is really tough to pull off,” she said.
Many in the audience were interested in the way stand up comedy had found its way from live performances to online shows, particularly when television and cinema have not picked it up in the same way. “I think Netflix and Amazon have really turned things around with their subscriber-based model Both these companies are looking for Indian content they can take global,” said Vaz, adding that film and television were still "too conservative" to try out the kind of humour that is currently popular online. “Give us another five to ten years, and you will see comedy affecting other media,” she said.