During his month-long tour of India, comedian Anubhav Singh Bassi has been entertaining audiences in Delhi, Mumbai, Jaipur, Kolkata, Bangalore, and other cities with his two-hour special show Kisi Ko Batana Mat. His performances have received a resoundingly good reception. To further add to his happiness, he sold 10,000 tickets for the same event in just two days—a rare feat for many comedians, especially in light of the fact that, prior to the COVID-19 epidemic, comedy was not widely acknowledged as a live art form. The pandemic’s “changing landscape” is what Bassi credits for his accomplishment.
He elucidates, “Things changed for me as several other comedians after COVID as ours was the first industry to reopen. I had started organising shows keeping my audiences’ safety in mind. And since people did not have many options (for entertainment) as the film industry was also shut, they came to the shows and realized that it’s worth their time and money.”
He adds, “Unko realize hua ki ye live art hi form hai aur ye Youtube par dekhne wali cheez nahi hai. And sheerly through word of mouth, we have reached to a place where we are organising these events at such grand venues with capacity to accommodate more and more people.”
In a same vein, comedian and Emmy winner Vir Das had previously revealed on Instagram that, until two years ago, comedy was not regarded as a “theatrical art form,” and that comedians were not allowed to perform in theaters. Bassi concurs with Das’ observation and continues by pointing out another factor that has led to comedians being able to perform on larger venues and receiving the recognition they deserve.
”Comedians earlier were not able to afford the cost of these auditoriums. But now, as people want to come and witness the live performance, I could increase the ticket prices. People are willing to spend money to watch my show. Cost of my VIP tickets (for Kisi Ko Batana Mat) is ₹3500 approximately and people don’t mind paying for it. I am able to afford the expenses of the sound recording, the stadium and more. Auditorium owner don’t mind anything as long as they are paid.”
Talking about his downfall, he adds, “I am not afraid of it because I understand that it will happen…that time will come…one day or the other. I know mera waqt khatam hojaaega aur naye artistes aajaenge. But jitna maine life me achieve kara hai, agar wo chala bhi jaaega toh mujhe ye satisfaction rahegi ki maine apne time acche se jee liya. I will be content and happy.”
“So I am grateful for all the love and appreciation coming my way, but I cannot become greedy and expect to get the same level of it throughout my life,” Bassi concludes.
