It has been 10 years since Kenny Sebastian’s bit about middle‑class families in restaurants went viral. By then, he had already been doing stand‑up for five years, performing for audiences who were only just discovering this form of entertainment.
Today, as he prepares for his next tour, the now-seasoned comic is looking at an audience that has not only grown up alongside him, but also seen it all. “The show is about marriage, therapy, ostriches…” says Kenny over a video call from Mumbai. “I can’t pin it down to one topic. It’s bizarre. It’s absurd. But I think this is the right time for a show like this because the audience is oversaturated with traditional stand‑up. So, when they see something that is music, sketch, absurdity, and tech all at once, they are curious.”
This show will also move beyond the standard mic-and-stool setup. “There’s a lot of tech, that has always been part of my shows — elaborate light and sound. I come from theatre, so I need to justify why we are in an auditorium. Why can’t we just do this in a comedy club? Because we have a huge light and sound show for you,” Kenny says with a laugh.
Comedy clubs vs. auditoriums
Still, he admits the scale comes at a cost. “I find club shows more enjoyable. In a small room, with this infectious energy, you don’t have to work as hard,” he says. Auditoriums are a different beast. “You have to fill a 2,000-seater with your energy. How does one person compensate for this giant space? But since we have strong technical elements, the audience experience is amazing. I am a slave to that.”
If the form has evolved, so has his material. Although Kenny is often labelled a “clean comic,” the themes he now explores are far more layered. He points to his recent Charulata bit on drinking as an example. “On the surface it’s a drunk story, but it’s actually about family dynamics, control, parenting. I don’t explicitly say drinking is good or bad. It is for the audience to decide.”
Kenny Sebastian with his wife Tracy and daughter Emily.
| Photo Credit:
Instagram/@kennethseb
Family and parenting
His early sets revolved around navigating his parents and the peculiarities of growing up in a middle‑class household. And while family dynamics and parenting remain central to his work, becoming a father in 2024 to his daughter Emily has sharpened that focus in new ways.
“My work has always been inspired by family. It is a unifying factor and cuts across cultures. Whether I go to America or Australia, everybody has a family. It transcends everything. I’m obsessed with my family, so it’s my favourite subject.”
Kenny thinks his generation are better parents. “It is not necessarily that our parents were bad; they just didn’t have access to information. Now when Emily does something we don’t like, the instinct is to remember she is a child. Our parents often treated us like adults when we were children and expected us to behave like children when we became adults. I’m not saying our generation is perfect. I am sure Emily will have complaints about me one day, just different ones.”
Marriage too, he notes, has become fertile territory for a new kind of comedy. “There are no ‘I hate my wife’ jokes anymore. It is more nuanced. I’ll talk about a fight that my wife Tracy and I had, and the comment section will be filled with real conversations — people debating whether fighting is healthy, someone talking about their own experiences. That is interesting to me.”
Like his material, his audiences too have evolved. “Earlier, audiences weren’t used to stand-up. So, I had to handhold them. Now I believe ‘You have to meet me halfway. I’m going to say something bizarre and silly, and you need to be on board’.”
With his audience growing with him, Kenny says it is quite cathartic to write for them. “People who saw me years ago are now married and have children, and I’m writing for them.”
For Kenny, music has often served as a bridge between his stand-up and his theatrical roots.
| Photo Credit:
Instagram/@kennethseb
The algorithm
Offstage, however, the economics of comedy have shifted. “It wasn’t this demanding back in the day. People were cool with waiting, and when there was new content, they were happy. Now the algorithm punishes you if you disappear. Not people — the algorithm.”
“However, content creators have found interesting ways to be visible. There are incredible podcasts, panels and quizzing shows coming out. If the algorithm didn’t push us to this breaking point, these shows wouldn’t have been created. I also feel Indian comedians experiment more than American ones. Everyone here does stand‑up, sketch, improv, panels. And the Indian audience is hungry for variety.”
As for him, Kenny is leaning into music — something, he reveals, is woven into his latest show. “We are releasing the songs online. Music comedy works differently; you can enjoy it even after knowing the joke.”
“I’m also looking at developing comedy films. India lacks small, story‑driven comedy films. The plus side is, a lot of new comedians are entering the industry every day; more comedians means more opportunities.”
Kenny says his latest shift into absurdity is his way of staying one step ahead of an audience that has seen it all.
| Photo Credit:
Instagram/@kennethseb
Dealing with fame
The emotional weight of being a public figure is something he navigates with help. “On stage, audiences are kind. But online negativity still affects me. Now, I block toxic people,” he says matter-of-factly, adding, “Therapy helps. I think everyone should go to therapy, especially people in the entertainment industry. Your work, your income, your validation — it is all tied to public response.”
“Earlier, there was pressure to always be funny. It used to drain me, ironically, it was the idea that I had to be happy all the time. When you grow older, you become more secure about who you are. People who watch my shows sometimes expect that version of me in real life. I just aim to be polite, not performative. And when I’m with my friends and family, I put zero energy into being funny.”
For now, though, the focus remains on the live experience. He admits he rarely switches off completely. “My brain is always analysing. That pattern recognition is probably why I’m here. If I stop performing, I start missing it.”
Kenny Sebastian is kickstarting his comedy music show Tempo Tantrums in Bengaluru with performances at St Joseph’s University Auditorium on January 31 (4pm, 7pm) and February 1 (3pm, 6pm); tickets are available on BookMyShow.
