The Cinemawala

That Vir Das is a great writer, goes without saying. He has an impeccable sense about comedy and balances it with his lenient dosages of what can be called the ‘Truth Treatment’. In his last Netflix show, ‘Abroad Understanding’ , between his many acts, he drew parallels between the current regime in the US and India and how the two function in same fashion. In his latest outing ‘Losing IT’, he takes this to another level, with stories from his life, interspersed in between. His stories will make you laugh that’s guaranteed, but be prepared to grimace at his caustic remarks about the current state of the nation, you as an individual, us as the general population. Be prepared to get annoyed at his take at every religion. But most importantly, be prepared to take home what he offers the most – some sound and sane advice.

Vir Das starts off with a story about the fake American accent, that usually a NRI possesses and the fact, due to the rise in the IT population, there’s a steady trickle of folks coming to San Francisco but eventually relocating San Jose, due to steep rents! His stories about his childhood spend in Africa, how his family had to relocate to India, his funny anecdotes about his Grandfather’s story telling abilities and his tryst with Appendicitis along with two Sardar surgeons will make you go ROFL. In order to bring world peace, he offers a new religion – ‘Chris-Lam’, an amalgamation of Christianity and Islam. His ‘Ramayana 101’ for the Americans and especially the act about Ram and Laxman hunting the golden deer, brings the entire house down with laughter. The fact he brings forth with this act, that without religion, mythology is just another cool story! His analogies about the 80-20 demarcation of demographics about everything is bound to tickle your funny bones.

There are some parts which are kind of the let downs. Religion is an oft-discussed topic in various stand ups. At times, it feels a little stretched. Whereas his ‘Ramayana’ act gave insight about religion complicating any type of narrative, but his act of praying in a ‘Chosque’ was a downer. Not totally unfunny but could’ve been better. In fact, the stories from his childhood, his life in general, his choice about acting in a sex comedy with Sunny Leone are something that come as a fresh breath of air. Here’s someone who likes to take pot shots at his own failures and he’s pretty cool about them! I would love to see more such stories from him than to listen just another rant about religion. 

Vir Das’s Special – Losing IT. Now streaming on Netflix worldwide. 

P.S – For the best bit of the show, please watch till the end. It’s really something worth waiting for!

The Cinemawala Rating: 3/5