Quite possibly the only metalcore drummer and web designer from Hong Kong who moonlights as a comedian, Vivek Mahbubani talks with Patrick Benjamin before his gig at Karma Komedians.

If an eskimo was freezing his ass off, what’s the first thing you would do?
Remind him that thanks to global warming, there’s light at the end of the tunnel, so hang in there!

What are some similarities with stand-up and drumming?
Many people are disappointed to find rockers in metal bands to be boring and quiet off stage because they’re probably stuck in their own little world of ringing-ears and whiplash. The same is often the case with comedians, many are quite boring off stage.

Folks tend to undermine the role of boredom, how influential is it in your life?
It’s one of the reasons I got into comedy. Because talking about life in general was too boring, I needed a twist. I got bored about saying the same thing in the same way so I started making jokes about it just to keep myself entertained. A laughing crowd is really a by-product of entertaining my boredom.

Like detectives, comics are noted for their observational skills, what’s your latest obsession?
The different ways McDonalds is cutting costs these days. From not giving you ketchup packets if you don’t ask, to realizing they only give you half-a-slice of cheese for your Filet-O-Fish!

What’s the biggest myth about Indian comedians you’d like to bust?
That we only can make fun of our body hair, odor and cheapness. We make fun of everyone’s body hair, odor and cheapness. The prerequisite is for them to have lots of body hair, odor and cheapness, and those are things we excel at.

Any surprises in store for Karma Komedians?
Karma Komedians? I thought this was the Bachelor for Arranged Marriages? I had all these jokes written to impress the dads and daughters.

Karma Komedians is on December 16-17 at The Arts House Chamber.

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