Akarsh Khurana, director of ‘Stand Up’ says, “This play is not about jokes but what goes into creating humour”!

For #AkarshKhurana, story-telling is an endless journey brimming with adventure and he has stamped his unique narrative style on the small and the big screen. The director of films like ‘#Karwaan’ and ‘#RashmiRocket’ also has a vast body of work as a theatre veteran and many of his teleplays including ‘#StandUp’ are in the #ZeeTheatre repository. Describing the process of directing ‘Stand Up,’ Akarsh shares, “The play is about a few people in a room who are dealing with their own unique personal and professional issues. This is a relatable theme irrespective of what the setting is. The story, in the end, isn’t about jokes but what goes into creating humour without becoming a joke yourself.”

‘Stand Up’ revolves around five budding comics who meet their mentor to prepare for a potentially life-changing and career-defining open-mic event. It is when they are trying to be at their funniest that they realise how tough it is to tell a joke without becoming an object of mockery. The story germinated in Akarsh while interacting with stand-up comedians at Mumbai’s Comedy Store where he has been part of regular group performances for approximately three years.

He recalls, “So there were times when we were sharing the green room with stand-up comics like Tanmay Bhatt, Rohan Joshi, and Aashish Shakya. It was very interesting to see that when they were working backstage, the air was not one of comedy always. It was also quite serious at times because like they say, comedy is a serious business. ”

As most of the characters in ‘Stand Up’ are struggling stand-up comedians, there was bound to be some humour but Akarsh insists that was not the goal. He explains, “The goal was really about writing a play about group dynamics between a competitive group of people that are making or trying to make a living by being funny. But you know the reality of that situation is not always funny. You may get into a competitive space with even people that you’ve hung out with, have learned from, or are friends with. There is such a desperate need to make your audience laugh, you know. So there’s this whole upside and downside of trying too hard to make something.

And finally, Akarsh managed to create a story that was not just about humor.” He concludes, “As I said earlier, it was never really supposed to be about the laughter. It was always supposed to be about a group of people who are trying to break away from the mundaneness of their lives by pursuing slightly more exciting opportunities to become stand-up comedians. There is that struggle and that desperation to kind of break away from a life that you are not necessarily enjoying to do something that looks like it could be enjoyable.”

The teleplay stars Abir Abrar, Adhaar Khurana, Omkar Kulkarni, Sarang Sathaye, Chaitnya Sharma, Kashin Shetty, Nipun Dharmadhikari and Zayn Khan. It will air on Airtel Spotlight, Dish TV Rangmanch Active, and D2H Rangmanch Active on January 29.