The South Asian Students Alliance hosted comedian Nimesh Patel as its fall keynote speaker at Alice Millar Chapel Friday evening, attracting around 300 attendees.
Patel, known for his stand-up comedy, made history in 2017 as the first Indian American writer on Saturday Night Live, writing for the show’s “Weekend Update” segment. Now, he has amassed over 1.4 million followers on TikTok.
Weinberg sophomore and SASA Co-Director of Social Affairs Aarav Raina said Patel has provided fantastic representation for South Asians in the entertainment industry, specifically in stand-up comedy.
“We wanted someone in the South Asian community that can be looked up to as someone that’s done excellent things in their field,“ Raina said. “You don’t see a lot of South Asian people in stand-up and I think (Patel) is breaking barriers by showing that we can be in the entertainment space.”
McCormick sophomore and SASA Co-Director of Social Affairs Meghna Sundaram, along with Raina, kicked off the event with a short introduction of the comedian. Patel was welcomed by praise, applause and cheers while he walked out to “Everyday Hustle” by Future, Metro Boomin and Rick Ross.
“I’ve never done comedy in a church before,” Patel said. “It’s going to be really weird saying ‘Jesus is Gay’ in this room.”
Patel performed a comedy set that took audience members through a first-class experience on a flight, what President-elect Donald Trump’s upcoming presidency could bring and multiple mentions of the Mike Tyson and Jake Paul boxing match.
He also touched on the struggles Indians have faced in the United States. In 1923, Punjabi veteran Bhagat Singh Thind sued the U.S. because the Bureau of Naturalization revoked his citizenship due to not being white, Patel said. The decision prompted thousands of Indians to leave the country, willingly and unwillingly, between the ’20s and ’40s.
“How did we come back in the ’70s and become the most dominant minority in this country?” Patel said. “Those 3,000 Indian people went back to India for 40 years to study…‘What does America like?’”
After the set, Patel answered questions from audience members. During the Q&A, Patel touched on topics including transitioning from finance to entertainment, convincing his parents that stand-up is a real job and working with comedians Chris Rock and Kenan Thompson.
Weinberg sophomore Vrinda Anurag Gupta attended SASA’s fall speaker event last year and said Patel was a more engaging speaker, especially since she knew him from Instagram.
“It’s a good way to get more exposure to the wider South Asian culture,” Gupta said. “Just because it’s a brown person doing the comedy doesn’t mean that it’s just for brown people.”
Gupta’s favorite moment of the event was when Patel made a joke about an inhaler and breathing exercises because she has friends who make jokes about their asthma. As a yoga instructor, she said the breathing exercises part of the joke “hit the spot” during the set.
Raina said that regardless of background, attendees can take away the dedication and drive Patel had to pave the way for South Asians in the entertainment world.
“(Patel) has been doing comedy for a long time, he kept at it and he’s grown to what he is today because he didn’t quit on his dreams,” said Raina. “I think it just goes to show that if you want something, you have to just keep working and achieve what you’re really passionate about.”
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