Engineer turned 2019 RAW Comedy finalist, actor (with appearances alongside Melissa McCarthy and Charlie Hunnam) and host of SBS podcast 'My First Year On Aussie Soil', Suraj Kolarkar returns to the Rhino Room with a late-night set of hilarious new stand-up material.
When Sydney comedian Suraj Kolarkar emerges from behind the curtain which divides the stage from the tiny closet-sized backstage nook, he jokes about standing there pre-show; it’s the only gag he repeats from the year before. In an onslaught of new material, Suraj is able to work a mid-week, early season, late-night set with ease.
In 'Joke Barrage', Suraj returns to preferred themes: the immigrant experience, his former career in the corporate world, his relationship with his partner (now wife) and his family, and self-deprecating humour about his unhealthy habits and childhood personality. Running through it all is a love of word-play, with observations of absurdities and inconsistencies only visible to an outside eye.
Why do Australians call their wives “the old lady” but their dads “the old man”? Immigrating to a new culture, Suraj explains, requires learning the language, but also idioms like these. While the immigrant experience forms the foundation of his set, Suraj explores all territories: relationships, Uber Eats deliveries, smartphone fitness trackers, how diseases are named, and even September 11.
Suraj does push the boundaries with some material: on some nights, or in less skilful hands, some jokes could cause offence, but that is the fine line that most comedians walk. As the show’s title suggests, there isn’t an overarching theme: it’s just a scattergun of jokes. This works, and many comedians, such as Ross Noble, made careers out of routines that lack a discernible narrative, but tying together a set with interconnected material is a potential avenue for Suraj to explore as his career continues to develop.
While the more established television comedians in the big tents understandably draw capacity crowds, it’s important to remember that hidden gems like Suraj can be found all across the Fringe.
