I’m Not Done Yet Web Review: Read between Kapil’s lines

Irsquom Not Done YetOn NetflixGenre Standup SpecialPerformer Kapil SharmaRating 35When was the last time you saw an audience being asked to give a round of applause with all seriousness to a former head of state at a standup comedy special Kapil Sharma does precisely thatmdashfor his fellow famous man from Amritsar Dr Manmohan Singh in his Netflix debut Irsquom Not Done YetThis might please another former twotime MP from Amritsar Navjyot Singh Sidhu currently Congress president in Punjab who lost his TV job as the resident Laughing Sikh on Sharmarsquos sketch chat showmdashthanks to a mob apparently offended by a random public statement he made once on PakistanWatch VideoSharma precedes and follows up his love for Dr Singh with lowkey jibes on Prime Minister Narendra Modimdashslyly placing references to Mann Ki Baat and demonetisationDigs so gentle subtle and selfaware of clear and present danger that it will bounce over heads of PM Modirsquos diehard fans permanently looking to take offense Unlikely any of them will go ldquoSo not donerdquo Yet Which is rather wellplayed Sharma JiWho Irsquom told doesnrsquot give many press interviews Which is a loss Infinitely worse is the fact that ever since he started Comedy Nights with Kapil later The Kapil Sharma Show on network television the three to four top traditional film stars in Bollywood began giving fewer oneonone press interviews themselvesmdashleading up to usual release of moviesKnowing that showing up on Sharmarsquos show besides other dancemusic reality stuff was enough to spread the word This is of course tragic for committed beat reporters who I know take entertainment more seriously than serious journalists delivering to your homes Indiarsquos politics as gossipentertainment insteadIn that sense Sharmarsquos standup without the obvious setups and punchlines on occasion feels like a fulllength interview delivered almost as is Shining a light from his fatherrsquos death pitfalls of fame to private issues such as depression and alcohol addictionThis is quite in line with wider trend where the standup comedian plays the confessional messengermdashhis personal mess being the messageHannah Gadsbyrsquos Netflix special Nanette 2018 I reckon was the high point of this kinda comedy Ethnically closer home so to say Hasan Minhajrsquos Homecoming King 2017 couldrsquove made some comic purists dub it a TED talk insteadThis is outside the wider net of opinion pieces that standin for standup comedymdashfeaturing the likes of Bill Maher Trevor Noah even Minhaj for that matter Geographically closer home Vir Dasrsquos Two Indias short clip that metaphorically shook the establishment in 2020 is what I mean Since nobodyrsquos taking politics as seriously may as well comedians thenThis genre is yet to evolve in India beyond Kunal Kamra Reasons are obvious Make no mistake itrsquos not like Sharma is going far out on a limb in the service of politically subservice material What he leaves behind to be read between the lines in his 54minute special is commendable stillAnything further would entail his own evolution from when he debuted as a competing comedian in the Great Indian Laughter Challenge in 2007 Otherwise Kapil Sharma is so lsquodesi mainstreamrsquo that even the rando who produces his TV show is Salman KhanHersquos so mainstream that I find fellow desis on Twitter claiming almost with a sense of pride that theyrsquove never watched his TV show thatrsquos strangely obsessed with crossdressing men in female parts It is evening weekend staple for uncles aunties and grandparents at North Indian homesCould be wrong but as a standup comic act where Sharma has been a departure from great desis of the past is in lsquocrowd workrsquomdashtalking to a live audience and adlibbing jokes from that conversation Itrsquos perhaps more a thing of westernEnglish comedyOthers before him say Raju Shrivastav even Johnny Lever have been overtly reverential to patrons before them in a hallmdashldquoMeri agli peshkash haihellip Next item aapke liyehelliprdquo Sharma roasts live spectators of The Kapil Sharma Showmdashoccasionally making fun of their mannerisms or appearancemdashmaking it seem like ragging sometimesWhether yoursquore roasting or ragging I guess depends on lsquopunching up or lsquopunching downrsquo Although context is supremely paramountmdashthe subject of a joke neednrsquot be its target as Ricky Gervais brilliantly patiently explains in his Netflix special Humanity 2018There is no crowd work in Sharmarsquos special And no punching down as well What remains are his pet tropes such as poking fun at the Indian lower middleclass life There is a peculiar way hersquos always done it that makes being ldquogareebrdquo poor as almost a thing worth FOMOAnd there is obviously the selfdeprecating humour on his lack of command over Englishmdashan act of tremendous confidence thatrsquos always stood him out Only once you appreciate how much an irreversible marker for class speaking fluent English in India still isSharma ends his standup act singing in English The rest of it is in Hindi of course With novelsfilms the more authenticspecific you go the more universal it gets I wonder if jokes work in the opposite direction Sharma himself talks about his lsquopoorIndianpeople Hindi jokesrsquo bombing before Nita Ambani onceThat said hersquos so lsquodesi mainstreamrsquo that the global Netflix would approach him to acquire a proper desi streetcred straightaway It is the most locally relevant piece of content theyrsquove produced lately in India for sure

I’m Not Done Yet Web Review: Read between Kapil’s lines

I’m Not Done Yet
On: Netflix
Genre: Stand-up Special
Performer: Kapil Sharma
Rating: 3/5

Buy now to read the full story.

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Home / Entertainment / Web Series / Article / I’m Not Done Yet Web Review: Read between Kapil’s lines

I’m Not Done Yet Web Review: Read between Kapil’s lines

I’m Not Done YetOn: NetflixGenre: Stand-up SpecialPerformer: Kapil SharmaRating: 3/5

Buy now to read the full story.

Trending Stories

Latest Photos

Latest Videos

Latest Web Stories

Mid-Day Fast

I’m Not Done Yet
On: Netflix
Genre: Stand-up Special
Performer: Kapil Sharma
Rating: 3/5