What Is Vir Das' Viagra?

A lot goes into creating Vir Das, or the anatomy of a Vir Das joke. Yes, there’s a process to it. No, it does not involve caring about what offends you

- Mayukh Majumdar

Vir Das thinks he’s too much of a comedian for Bollywood and too Bollywood for comedy. He’s stated that he’s an outsider in the industry so many times that Sorabh Pant even called him the “Priyanka Chopra of comedy”. That’s the first question I ask him — why does he consider himself to be an outsider in the industry? And when does one stop being an outsider? After all, when Das started out, he may have been an outsider but more than 10 years later, how can that still be the case?

“To really be considered an insider, you have to really spend enough time within that industry. And that should form a large part of your year. Fortunately, I think, I’ve always been kind of transient. Before you can get lost in shooting one thing after another and spending too much time in vanity vans with entourages, I end up going on tour. And then I’m not on tour for 52 weeks in a year either,” he explains.

Das is starring in a Netflix show about a comedian who needs to commit murder right before he goes on stage. Hasmukh has an interesting premise — a comedian who is also a serial killer. Das’ character in the show cannot get it up, metaphorically speaking, until he commits murder. The minute he feels the life escaping from his victim’s body, his deep-seated fears are silenced and he can go on stage in front of a brutal crowd of hardy Uttar Pradesh folk and crack jokes that have them rolling on the floor.