Starting a club on campus is not easy, especially for a first-year. However, this did not stop Jay Panchal, who sat down with the English Press Club to talk about Comedy Hub.
Comedy Hub was formally put into probation by the Student’s Union after the recently held Union Council Meeting. Jay explained that the primary activity of the club would be organizing ‘Stand-Up Nites’. The club aims to support students who wish to enter the realm of comedy.
The process of recruiting new members proved to be challenging, yet extremely interesting for the fledgling club. Jay spoke about how he had released an invitation over social media, requesting interested members to contact him. What started as a small group of seven first-year students has now expanded to a team of thirty members.
Their premiere event, ‘Comedy Garam’, was held on 12th October, before the club was formalized. The performers were all first-year students, and performances were based on themes ranging from department interactions to daily mess experiences. Despite the event being announced on short notice, the turnout exceeded the expectations of the performers, with an audience of over ninety people.
The club plans to conduct events beyond the precincts of traditional stand-up comedy. Apart from Stand-Up Nites, the club’s members plan to organize a tour of all the hostels to perform curated content specific to each hostel. Additionally, the club has also planned a series of informal interviews of famous personalities on campus, from professors and members of the non-teaching faculty to BITSian students.
Jay looked at the experience of creating a club as an opportunity from which he and his team have learnt a great deal. He is optimistic about the future of Comedy Hub, the first club on campus dedicated to encouraging an atmosphere where comedy is nurtured as a performing art.