Comedy Store Mumbai: Founder Don Ward talks funny

Part One: Bringing the business of funny to India 

Amidst the last minute preparations for opening weekend in Mumbai June 19, CNNGo cornered Don Ward, founder of The Comedy Store in the United Kingdom, in the coffee shop of the ITC hotel in Lower Parel. The Store has hosted comedy greats like Eddie Izzard, Robin Williams, Paul Merton, Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders, all of whom have tickled multiple ribs on its London and Manchester stages. The mandate for Mumbai appears to be the same. 

Located centrally at the Paladium Mall in Phoenix Mills, The Comedy Store is about to make Mumbai a center for comedy in the country. And not just a branded venue for foreign acts to perform but also a hub for nurturing indigenous talent to send across to foreign shores. Ward plans on going to other major cities in India to find raw comedy talent and bring the comedians to Mumbai for the stage experience. He says that after he's found a "solid group of 10 comedians who can perform a solid 10 minutes", he plans on taking them, with the aid of the British Council, to The Comedy Store in London and Manchester and eventually the Edinburgh Festival. 

One of the Indian acts that will be a regular on the black box is Vir Das, who began last Wednesday with a show entitled, "Sri Ravi Darsaan's Art of Laughing Programme". While right now stand-up forms the big league of comedy formats, Ward also plans on experimenting with other comedy formats, just as he did in London. 

The Comedy Store has had two weekends of shows so far, both of which were lapped up by the comedy-hungry Indian audience while in the background the comedy of setting up shop in India plays on -- monsoon water leakage and air conditioning issues. The Store isn’t fully ready yet, its restaurant and restrooms are still to be finished. But if all goes well, with a little more luck than they’ve had so far, they’ll be in full swinging business by July. 

Part Two: International recognition for Indian comedy 

Through his years of comedy management and experience, Ward has helped and nurtured many comedians through their career, and is now extending that experience to the raw talent that’s waiting here in India. His plans go beyond borders and he wants to achieve international recognition for Indian comedy. As an amateur comedian myself, listening to his plans sent shivers blasting down my spine. 

The big thing with India is obviously language disparities. I’ve seen stand up shows where the comedians’ hilarity really comes out in the use of Hinglish. I talked to Don about this, and he proved that he had definitely taken this into consideration when planning his building of Indian talent. 

This is a call to comedians out there. If you have a friend you think is funny, force them to go to The Comedy Store India website because your friend might be the next big thing. Keep watching the website and the page on Facebook for the next round of auditions.