10 Must Watch Comedy Special on OTTs During Lockdown

10 Must Watch Comedy Special on OTTs During Lockdown
Comedy shows to watch amid coronavirus lockdown
10 Must Watch Comedy Special on OTTs During Lockdown
Comedy shows to watch amid coronavirus lockdown

Amidst the nationwide lockdown and hysteria of COVID-19, the world needs a good laugh now more than ever. Thanks to OTT platforms like Netflix, and Amazon Prime, there is gazillion content on the internet for some light-hearted binging.

What Comedy Shows You Should Watch

Take a look at some of the comedy specials you can watch online if you haven’t already.

Trevor Noah: Afraid of the Dark (2017)

There will be a vacuum in the list if you don’t start with Trevor Noah. One of the finest satirist hosting ‘The Daily Show’ and scrutinising the 21st century America, he is on Netflix with shows like ‘…Afraid of the Dark’ and ‘Trevor Noah: Son of Patricia’ (2018). In Afraid of The Dark, Noah touches upon the perils of naming countries, how traffic lights turn New Yorkers invincible and why one should not drink when in Scotland.

Trevor’s Noah’s take on Trump’s recent visit in India on the Daily Show is also one of the most viewed episodes available on YouTube for Free.

Vir Das: For India (2020)

Streaming on Netflix, the show goes on for a little over 75 minutes where Das expresses his emotions he feels for the country through a ‘love letter’. Through the special, Das uses cultural elements of India such as food, customs, historical events such as Jallianwala Bagh to India’s love for the Old Monk and of course one joke on Narendra Modi. What makes the special a must watch is its sharp takes and blunt punchlines with a politically safe disclaimer in the end that his idea of India can differ.

Kanan Gill: Keep It Real (2017)

Remember Pretentious Movie Reviews? The charming reviewer Kanan Gill is streaming on Amazon Prime with ‘Kanan Gill: Keep It Real’. In this one hour special, Gill squints at diverse subjects like difficulty in communicating with your parents to The Constitution of India. The show has some of the political connotations but it is real and hence, funny.

Ladies Up (2019)

A bunch of women came together shattering the age-old question of if women can also be funny and gave us merry good time binging season 1 of ‘Ladies Up’. Four women, Prashasti Singh, Kaneez Surka, Supriya Joshi and Niveditha Prakasam, touched upon subjects like questionable parental support, disastrous dating prospects and life as an independent woman.

One Mic Stand Season 1 (2019)

The much talked about comedy special of 2019 as the show featured some big names like Shashi Tharoor, Tapsee Pannu and Richa Chadha.

The season has five episodes featuring Bhuvan Bam, Tapsee Pannu, Richa Chadha, Vishal Dadlani, and Shashi Tharoor where the lot took their turns to present comedy undertones in the world from their perspective of specialty.

How successful they are as comedians is a different ball game altogether but to see actors and politicians doing stand-up is interesting.

Related Link: One Mic Stand: A Diversified Cast Stands on the Grounds of Uniqueness

Hasan Minhaj: Homecoming King (2017)

Remember the 29-minute episode on Indian Election on Hasan Minaj’s ‘Patriotic Act’ which was reportedly taken down by Netflix? Minhaj has another special called ‘… Homecoming King’ where he shares his personal stories about racism, immigrant parents, prom night horrors and more and is fortunately still streaming on Netflix.

Stand Ups by Kunal Kamra

Surrounded by controversy after ‘heckling’ Arnab Goswami, Kamra’s popularity was subsided because of comedy. Mostly political in all his stand up videos, one that is underrated is ‘Bombay Indore’ where he says “I love Indore … But I’m happy to be born in Bombay”. And it’s a must-watch.

Dave Chappelle: Sticks & Stones (2019)

An American stand-up comedian, actor, writer and producer, Dave Chappelle’s ‘… Sticks & Stones’ from 2019 comedy special is hilarious. In this episode, Chappelle talks about gun culture, the opioid crisis and the tidal wave of celebrity scandals in a defiant stand-up special filmed in Atlanta.

Ellen DeGeneres: Relatable (2018)

Who doesn’t know Ellen? A lot of us grew up watching the Ellen show and the snippets on YouTube, but here is a treat for all of us. In the show ‘Relatable’, Ellen talks about the her road to stardom and details the heartfelt lessons she learnt on the way.

Bonus: There’s a 10 minutes separate episode available for audience burning questions.

Zakir Khan: Haq Se Single (2017)

One of the most popular comedians for his unrequited love affairs amongst the youngsters of the country is Zakir Khan. In Haq Se Single, Zakir takes you through the guide of becoming a ‘Sakht Launda’. Though considered to be one of the most-watched episode on Prime, the comedian has also received flak from the critics for the underlining sexism in his material.

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