Smile with malice

By Sukant Deepak

New Delhi, March 1 (SocialNews.XYZ) Stressing that we tend to take ourselves too seriously, writer and journalist Rahul Singh feels that comedy and farce must infuse our contemporary life -- politically and socially. As he gets set to present the debut edition of 'Khushwant Singh Humor Fest 2020 - With Malice' from March 5 to 7 at Hotel Ambassador here, Singh, who is also the Festival Director of Khushwant Singh LitFest in Kasauli, feels that the capital is just the right place to hold the humour fest.

"Delhi is where Khushwant Singh spent most of his life. The Ambassador Hotel and Sujan Singh Park, where he lived was built by his father Sir Sobha Singh and named after Sobha Singh's father, Sujan Singh," Rahul Singh, the son of Khushwant Singh, tells IANS.

Open to taking it to other cities as well, depending on the response and getting adequate sponsors, he recalls how the idea of the humor fest was born. "Jaskaran Singh and Maheep Singh had come to Kasauli when we had a session on humour, something which was very important for my father. They suggested that it made all the sense to have a festival devoted to humour."

While the annual Khushwant Singh Litfest will be held in the hill town on from October 9 to 12, Singh feels that the increasing number of literature festivals across the country will do only good. "They get more Indians on reading the books and spending less time on the Internet and TV. But very few literature festivals are able to continue every year. Getting sponsors is a major problem," he laments.

The first part of the humour fest will include panel discussions, book launches, anecdotes by friends and family - known as the "8 PM Bottoms up club" - from his life. Sessions which can be expected include 'Urdu Tanz-o-Mizah ki shayari', 'Humour in Law' and 'History of Delhi through the eyes of Humour'.

The second part will be embellished by performances belonging to various genres with humour and laughter as central themes. Ranging from the traditional Urdu storytelling - Quissagoi by Danish Husain of the Hoshruba Repertory to The Kyunki Ladkiya Funny Nahin Hoti - a comedy collective based on women's issues by Mahila Manch, Gujarat.

Stand up comedians like Amit Tandon, Neeti Palta, Anubhav Singh Bassi, Rajneesh Kapoor, Gursimran Khamba, Atul Khatri and Zakir Khan, besides Delhi-based ones will also be part of the festival.

Source: IANS