Vir Das feels right at home in Singapore
The Emmy-winning comedian, actor and director will be performing in the Lion City as part of his world tour
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WHEN Vir Das touches down in Singapore, he doesn’t head to a hotel. “It’s the only place that I come to for a show where I don’t ever stay in a hotel,” he says over a Zoom interview with The Business Times. “My eldest sister and my brother-in-law and my two nephews live here.”
For a globe-trotting comedian-director-actor-writer, this personal touch transforms the Lion City into something special. “For many years I will take any gig I get offered in Singapore, just because of that connection!”
This week, the Emmy-winning comedian’s latest international tour, Hey Stranger, makes a stop here on Thursday (May 21). The show promises his signature blend of incisive social commentary, razor-sharp humour and glimpses into the quirks of modern India, all delivered with the charm that has made him a global stand-up sensation.
Explaining the title, Das says that Hey Stranger came from the realisation that he has spent 90 per cent of his life with complete strangers in a room, and it creates a special kind of freedom and power between him and the audience.
“We are never going to see each other again for at least the next two years, and therefore for the next two hours, we have complete freedom with each other,” he enthuses.
“There are things that you can say to a stranger that you cannot say to the people that you love, and (at the show), we’re going to be saying all of those things.”
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Over the years, he has performed more than 180 shows worldwide, selling out venues from Carnegie Hall in New York to the Eventim Apollo in London, and earning acclaim at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
His previous special, Landing, premiered to universal acclaim and won the 2023 International Emmy Award for Best Comedy, following his first Emmy nomination for Vir Das: For India in 2021.
Off-stage, he has written his first memoir, The Outsider; and also made his directorial debut recently with the feature film, Happy Patel.
The latter is an experience he describes as the closest thing to stand-up. “I loved it because it’s like being on stage where you’re using every percentage of your mental faculties,” he says. “Directing a movie is the same because your mental engines are turning at all times.”
Beyond the director’s chair, he also fronts India’s premier comedy-rock band, Alien Chutney, and has acted in films and television projects that span genres and continents. Among them are Judd Apatow’s Netflix feature, The Bubble; ABC’s drama-comedy, Whiskey Cavalier; Amazon’s travel series, Jestination Unknown; and the Netflix thriller, Hasmukh.
Many critics note that Das has long been a bridge between Indian and Western comedy but he resists that idea slightly because he says the country is too diverse for one man to represent.
“I do look upon my shows as a catch-up with India, you know, if I come to Singapore, I think 60 per cent of the crowd will definitely be Indian, and so a lot of those people haven’t been in a room full of Indians in a very long time, so they’re kind of looking forward to modern India and a catch-up with modern India.”
Catch Vir Das’ Hey Stranger on May 21 at The Theatre at Mediacorp. Tickets on sale now at www.ticketmaster.sg
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