Momus Najmi posted: " This Pretender is the Genuine Article ! ★★★★★ Book you tickets Here I was, Sunday, late morning, cooking a late breakfast or an early lunch – whatever you want to call it – for my wife and I, that I get a text from my friend. "Eshaan Akhbar: T" The World of Momus
Here I was, Sunday, late morning, cooking a late breakfast or an early lunch – whatever you want to call it – for my wife and I, that I get a text from my friend. "Eshaan Akhbar: The Pretender' playing at Chelmsford Theatre on 30th of March, what do you think? Supported Micky Flanagan". I will be honest, before that day I never heard of Eshaan. I have more broadly given up on most British comedians, especially those who have appeared on panel shows. They are too preachy, don't have any proper edge to their comedy, lean heavily on one political side and are ever eager to remind you of it, constantly. But seeing as it was local to us in Essex – I thought why not, let's take a punt. Help a brother out. And boy oh boy, was I pleasantly surprised.
Before we get on the show, let me put in a great positive in the pre-show set up mix – a brilliant initiative by Eshaan Akhbar that I would love to see replicated all over. He asked his audience in a pre-show communication, to bring contributions for the local food bank. It is such a simple but an immensely kind act, I am proud to say that the Essex crowd gave generously. A wonderful gesture.
Okay now the act, the main act, The Pretender. The riff starts playing, and it's the Foo Fighters' song blazing on. That piqued my interest straight away. Another short diversion before I continue. I did do my research before the show. I went and watched Eshaan Akhbar's interview with the Triggernometry Podcast guys, Francis Foster and Konstantin Kisin, aired some 4 years ago (Also when I realized that 2019 was in fact 4 years ago! ). Follow the link if you want to watch that episode: Eshaan Akbar on Islam, Tolerance and Identity
I found so many similarities with his views, maybe not all the views, but I guess I found similarities with his thought process. Giving each viewpoint its fair due and having a broader perspective on subjects appreciating various nuances. So that hooked me on anyway. It is more important the way a person thinks rather than what they think - because thoughts are ever evolving as long as they have a good process behind them.
And that is exactly what can be felt throughout his show. A fair and honest evaluation of experiences, forming a broader perspective that takes everyone along the journey. And then I watched some of his older clips, few reruns of his appearances on Mock the Week and QI, and then I saw his Quran on Stage act – that sent me into a laughing fit. Brave, original and funny. And this was evident throughout his show 'The Pretender' as well, his points were well made but easily digestible because they were so humorous while being true. I was laughing so hard, that my wife had to nudge me few times telling me to control myself slightly for the benefit of others around me. Needless to say, I kept on laughing my heart out. Pure comedy connects with people – and Essex loves and appreciates a proper authentic talent. As I am sure the rest of England and the world will as well.
Eshaan dealt with some difficult topics, within the sphere of racism. But he didn't use his show to preach or chastise the audience. God, that is what most of the comedians within Britain are doing these days. Scoring cheap points and laughs. No edginess to them, no originality. No, that is not what Eshaan did. He gave a fair account of his experiences, but he also included the experiences of his father. To show his audience - have some perspective, have some context – yes we have issues, and yes we are working to make things better, but look at how far we have come. That was refreshing. He didn't make it overtly political; he actually made it unpolitical. And since it was hilarious it had a sense of bringing people together by being allowed to laugh at the peculiarities of our cultural variations. His timing, his delivery, his jokes, his call backs were on point. Eshaan Akhbar's act is polished, he is ready to be elite and he deserves a bigger stage. Soon that will happen. And as long as he keeps the same fair mindedness and keep working on making people laugh above all else, I have no doubt that he will become a British Comedy Legend one day. He did not disappoint. 5-star performance. He is no pretender; he is the genuine article – the real deal.
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