Deccan Herald review of Keetale in 2005

Sunday, May 29, 2005 

 Deccan Herald » Fine Art / Culture » Detailed Story  

Stand-up for some mischief  

Michael Patrao speaks with Kannada theatre star Sihi Kahi Chandru, the man behind the success of ‘Keetale,’a stand-up comedy act in ‘Kanglish’- a combination of Kannada and English, that amounts to experimental theatre.


The concept of stand up comedy is not new to Kannada theatre. However, the staging of ‘Keetale’ (Mischief) at Ranga Shankara in Bangalore recently, was not only a bold attempt to bring back a time-tested theatrical format, but it also experimented with the conventional format.

Playing the one-man show is Sihi Kahi Chandru, well known for his comic portrayals in Kannada movies and television sitcoms like ‘Silli Lalli’ and ‘Paapa Pandu’.

Explains Chandru, “It is a sort of stand-up comedy show like a ‘Drew Carey show’ or Shekhar Suman’s, ‘Movers and Shakers.’ It’s a one- man show on the theme of ‘Games people play.’ It is an interactive comedy in which I invite members of the audience on the stage. There is improvisation in the given framework of the script”.


Stand-ups have a tradition which goes back to hundreds of centuries. There was an African pygmy tribe called Danga who performed in the Pharaoh’s court in ancient Egypt dating back to 2000 BC. the Vidushaks of our kings and kingdoms, Birbal in Akbar’s court and Tenali Raman in Krishnadevaraya’s court are all a variations of stand-up comedy.

The folk form Harikatha (Story of Lord Hari) uses music, dance and narration to audiences. The entire Dasa sahitya is derived from this particular style of musical narration.

In fact, ‘Keetale’ is supported by a team of musicians and makes use of songs from movies, plays and samples of Harikatha.

America saw the boom of stand up comedy starting in the 1950s in the period following the Second World War. The development of good quality microphones and the advent of television led to more intimate and less robust approaches to live comedy.

The American legal system, race relations and sexual humour provided most of the stand-up comedians with their wits.

Some names in the stand-up comedy hall of fame include Jim Carrey, Eddie Murphy, Robin Williams, Jamie Foxx, Benny Hill, Drew Carey, Ray Romano, Tony Allen, Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin, Woody Allen, Steve Martin, Chris Rock, Jerry Seinfeld, Bill Crosby, Steve Allen and Tim Allen.

‘Keetale’ is a 90-minute play in two parts. The script of the play is woven around our lives and is a comical look at ourselves and the drama in our lives. The comic scenes from daily life are presented by Chandru with his sense of timing and narration style.

Says Chandru, “The play was a test for me. I had to memorise my lines and keep the audience engaged for one-and-a-half hour. The language used is ‘Kanglish’ (a combination of Kannada and English).”

Says P D Satish Chandra, director of the play, “It is like feedback theatre. No two shows will be the same. There is a trend towards such experimental theatre in Bangalore like the staging of Hasyotsava (humour festival).”

The script for ‘Keetale’ is written by M S Narasimha Murthy, whose books ‘Swayam Vadhu’ and ‘Vargavari’ have bagged the Karnataka State Sahitya Academy award in 1974 and 1992 respectively.

His claim to fame is however scripts for television serials such as ‘Paapa Pandu.’ ‘Silli Lalli,’ ‘Crazy Colonel,’ ‘Mr Nirudyogi,’ ‘Nagu Nagutha Nali,’ ‘Conductor Kariyappa,’ ‘Sabina’ and ‘Uncle Illappa’.

The music by Gajanana T Naik for ‘Keetale’ matches with the timing of the performer, which is very crucial in a stand-up comedy show. “Gaja,” as he is known in theatre circles has more than 50 plays under his belt.

Similar experiment theatre has been done by actor-director Yeshwanth Sirdeshpande in his one-may show ‘Rashi Kathe’ in which he narrates stories based on the Zodiac signs. However, it is not an interactive play. The audience are open to innovations in theatre and ‘Keetale’ should do well in its future shows.