• Latest
  • Trending
‘No madam can scare me’: maid turned comedian mocks India’s elite

‘No madam can scare me’: maid turned comedian mocks India’s elite

August 7, 2018
Godiva sells Asia business to South Korea’s MBK for $1bn

Godiva sells Asia business to South Korea’s MBK for $1bn

February 21, 2019
Has Pakistan supplanted Iran as the leading terror sponsor?

Has Pakistan supplanted Iran as the leading terror sponsor?

February 21, 2019
More black money present within India than outside: Secret govt report

More black money present within India than outside: Secret govt report

February 21, 2019
India’s supreme court has rendered over a million forest-dwelling families homeless

India’s supreme court has rendered over a million forest-dwelling families homeless

February 21, 2019
Pakistani ‘stoned to death’ in Indian jail amid Kashmir tensions

Pakistani ‘stoned to death’ in Indian jail amid Kashmir tensions

February 21, 2019
India threatens to send one of its billionaires to jail

India threatens to send one of its billionaires to jail

February 21, 2019
Twitter Policy on Political ad Transparency to Begin in India From March 11

Twitter Policy on Political ad Transparency to Begin in India From March 11

February 20, 2019
Elusive $15 Billion India Defense Contract Frustrates Boeing To Lockheed

Elusive $15 Billion India Defense Contract Frustrates Boeing To Lockheed

February 20, 2019
We don’t need your tomatoes, Punjab agriculture minister tells India

We don’t need your tomatoes, Punjab agriculture minister tells India

February 20, 2019
Trade war hits SE Asia, growth down for first time in 3 years

Trade war hits SE Asia, growth down for first time in 3 years

February 19, 2019
Pulwama revenge: India plans 360 degree action against Pakistan

Pulwama revenge: India plans 360 degree action against Pakistan

February 19, 2019
Ikea sets its sights on India

Ikea sets its sights on India

February 19, 2019
12 °c
Delhi
14 ° Thu
13 ° Fri
15 ° Sat
14 ° Sun
Friday, February 22, 2019
Voice of India
No Result
View All Result
  • India News
    • Congress
    • Kashmir
    • Politics
  • Asia
    • China
    • Hong Kong
    • Japan
    • North Korea
    • Oceania
    • Pakistan
    • South Korea
    • Southeast Asia
  • World
    • Africa
    • Canada
    • Europe
    • Latin America
    • Middle East
      • Iraq
      • Israel
      • Jordan
      • Syria
    • Russia
    • United Kingdom
    • United States
  • National Security
    • Cyber Security
    • Military
    • Terrorism
      • ISIS
  • Economy
    • Business
    • Stock Market
    • Science
    • Technology
  • Culture
    • Art
    • Bollywood
    • Books & Literature
    • Food & Drink
    • Health
    • History
    • Lifestyle
    • Movies & TV
    • Music
    • Privacy
    • Religion
    • Travel
    • Women & Children
  • Environment
    • Climate Change
    • Disaster
    • Wildlife / Endangered Species
  • Sports
    • Cricket
    • Auto Racing
    • Cycling
    • Football
    • Golf
    • Olympics
    • Tennis
    • Water Sports
  • India News
    • Congress
    • Kashmir
    • Politics
  • Asia
    • China
    • Hong Kong
    • Japan
    • North Korea
    • Oceania
    • Pakistan
    • South Korea
    • Southeast Asia
  • World
    • Africa
    • Canada
    • Europe
    • Latin America
    • Middle East
      • Iraq
      • Israel
      • Jordan
      • Syria
    • Russia
    • United Kingdom
    • United States
  • National Security
    • Cyber Security
    • Military
    • Terrorism
      • ISIS
  • Economy
    • Business
    • Stock Market
    • Science
    • Technology
  • Culture
    • Art
    • Bollywood
    • Books & Literature
    • Food & Drink
    • Health
    • History
    • Lifestyle
    • Movies & TV
    • Music
    • Privacy
    • Religion
    • Travel
    • Women & Children
  • Environment
    • Climate Change
    • Disaster
    • Wildlife / Endangered Species
  • Sports
    • Cricket
    • Auto Racing
    • Cycling
    • Football
    • Golf
    • Olympics
    • Tennis
    • Water Sports
No Result
View All Result
Voice of India
No Result
View All Result

‘No madam can scare me’: maid turned comedian mocks India’s elite

August 7, 2018
in Art, Culture, Featured, India News, Movies & TV
0
Home Culture Art
Post Views: 278

 
It is considered insolent in India for a maid to talk back. But one housekeeper in Mumbai is challenging the expectation to be submissive and obedient by lampooning the world of domestic employment in a standup routine several nights a week.

“Although my employers were mostly nice to me, I used to hear horror stories from other maids,” Deepika Mhatre, 43, told the Guardian. “I used my experiences for my routine, like other comedians,” she said.

Mhatre’s daily routine hardly lent itself to laughs. Her day would start at 4am. From 4.30 she travelled on various commuter trains, selling imitation jewellery to passengers on their way to work in downtown Mumbai. By 7am she arrived at the first of five homes in Malad where she cooked.

At 2pm she would leave for the 90-minute journey home, where she did her household chores, looked after her ailing, asthmatic husband, who has not worked for 15 years, and their three daughters, and bought and packed jewellery for the next day.

At 6pm she would start cooking dinner for the family. These days, however, in the evenings she catches a train into town and performs at one of Mumbai’s comedy clubs.

Standup comedy in India is in its infancy. The humour Indians enjoy in private is missing from public life and entertainment, and Bollywood’s idea of humour is slapstick. A maid doing standup comedy is unheard of.

On stage, a matronly figure in a salwar kameez and dupatta – a long scarf – with her long hair tied back, she tells the audience she is special. So special that in the building where she works, she says, they have installed a special lift just for her. She pauses. In the homes where she works, they even have special plates and glasses just for her, she says.

It takes a second or two before the audience understands that she is satirising the habit across India of forcing domestic staff – maids, cooks, nannies and drivers – to use separate elevators so they don’t “pollute” the lifts used by the rich residents, and to eat off separate plates.

“That’s fine. Go and hide your precious utensils that I am not allowed to use,” continues Mhatre. “But whose hands made the chapattis you eat? And whose hands apply the balm when a tired madam [lady of the house] needs a massage?”

Mhatre goes on to talk about how maids have to sit on the floor, use a separate chair or stand in a corner, and she makes fun of how the rich haggle with the poor over a few measly rupees but will happily pay whatever price is marked on goods in a swanky mall.

Mhatre’s sets can be seen as an attack on India’s extreme social inequality, and the inability of the rich to treat the poor as their equals. “Why do they do this? It’s because they have no heart, no feeling for poor people,” she said.

Mhatre had always made her family crack up. But it was only when one of her employers, Sangeeta Vyas – who Mhatre says was much nicer than most – one day arranged a talent show for people who work as maids or drivers that Mhatre got a chance to perform. “All the other participants sang or danced. I got on stage and talked about madams. The audience liked it.”

After a journalist heard about her, she was invited to perform at gigs and received encouragement from Aditi Mittal, a Mumbai comedian who has a web show called Bad Girls, which features unconventional women doing unconventional things. Her two-minute routine has gradually expanded to 10 minutes. “She can mine this madam material – their classist and superior ways – for ages because their behaviour is so ridiculous,” said Mittal.

Making fun of oneself is not common in India, where blowing one’s own trumpet is more widespread, but audiences seem to appreciate her self-deprecation – despite the fact that, as Mittal says, she speaks truth to power.

The gruelling routine of rising at 4am and getting home at midnight after a gig became too much for her, and two months ago she stopped her cooking work. Now it’s only the jewellery income that supports the family. “It’s tough but I don’t want to give it up. It’s the first opportunity I’ve ever had to be someone.”

Given the profoundly subordinate status of maids in India, Mhatre could be forgiven for being worried about any possible repercussions, but she says firmly that “no madam can scare me”.

“My struggles in life have made me strong. Appearing on stage has added to my confidence now, so no, I don’t fear any repercussions. In fact, some madams who bumped into me near the lifts spoke politely to me for the first time. Before, I had been invisible.”

Source :

The Guardian

Tags: comedian mocksDeepika MhatreIndiaIndia's elitemaidnewsSouth and Central Asia
Share1TweetShare
Next Post
What India taught Indra Nooyi about leadership

What India taught Indra Nooyi about leadership

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

four + 12 =

Translate

Popular Post

Narendra Modi’s BJP Sweeping Key India State Polls
Uncategorized

Narendra Modi’s BJP Sweeping Key India State Polls

March 11, 2017
1

  Early trends suggest that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is set to sweep crucial assembly elections...

Read more
Activists Go Undercover to Expose India’s Illegal Sex-Selective Abortions

Activists Go Undercover to Expose India’s Illegal Sex-Selective Abortions

March 27, 2017
Citizens must be protected amid ‘rising intolerance’: US to Indian government

Citizens must be protected amid ‘rising intolerance’: US to Indian government

July 30, 2016
Godiva sells Asia business to South Korea’s MBK for $1bn

Godiva sells Asia business to South Korea’s MBK for $1bn

February 21, 2019
‘Gau Rakshaks’ strike again? Fresh video from Rajasthan surfaces

‘Gau Rakshaks’ strike again? Fresh video from Rajasthan surfaces

July 30, 2016
  • About Us
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Creative Commons
  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclaimer
  • Contact Us

Topics

Follow Us

About Us

Voiceofindia.news is part of the Voice Of India Media Group LLC, which delivers daily news around the globe. ​

© 2015 Voice Of India

No Result
View All Result
  • India News
    • Congress
    • Kashmir
    • Politics
  • Asia
    • China
    • Hong Kong
    • Japan
    • North Korea
    • Oceania
    • Pakistan
    • South Korea
    • Southeast Asia
  • World
    • Africa
    • Canada
    • Europe
    • Latin America
    • Middle East
      • Iraq
      • Israel
      • Jordan
      • Syria
    • Russia
    • United Kingdom
    • United States
  • National Security
    • Cyber Security
    • Military
    • Terrorism
      • ISIS
  • Economy
    • Business
    • Stock Market
    • Science
    • Technology
  • Culture
    • Art
    • Bollywood
    • Books & Literature
    • Food & Drink
    • Health
    • History
    • Lifestyle
    • Movies & TV
    • Music
    • Privacy
    • Religion
    • Travel
    • Women & Children
  • Environment
    • Climate Change
    • Disaster
    • Wildlife / Endangered Species
  • Sports
    • Cricket
    • Auto Racing
    • Cycling
    • Football
    • Golf
    • Olympics
    • Tennis
    • Water Sports

© 2015 Voice Of India