Why Chicago’s Vik Pandya Loves Milwaukee

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Photo by Akash Wadhwani Photography - Facebook

Vik Pandya

Vik Pandya has learned the value of cooperation. At least he has when it comes to letting his crowds guide the course of his comedy.  

"Rather than pre-writing an entire bit then saying it verbatim," Pandya shares of his former technique for crafting his stand-up, "I'll have a premise or a couple points on a topic and start talking about it on stage, hoping to 'find' the bit. Many times, the audience lets you know what the funny part is, or what parts you should expand on more so that has been a very rewarding way to approach material."  

Pandya brings his latest set of bits to the Lab stage at the Milwaukee Improv for three shows on Friday, Oct. 31 and Saturday, Nov. 1. For the Chicago comic, it's a return to a state that has benefitted his comedic growth immensely.  

“Wisconsin really has been a huge help to my career, one of the first comedy festivals I did was the Milwaukee Comedy Festival, the first year I did it I was a host, then I returned as a feature, and eventually as a headliner. I owe a lot to all the great clubs and shows that have given me stage time like the Laughing Tap, the Improv, Comedy on State, the Comedy Cabin, Skyline and more. Many of my early fans were from these early shows in the Wisconsin area,” Pandya enthuses.  

Laughing and Thinking 

Just as Wisconsinites and comedy lovers elsewhere have helped Pandya establish himself as an increasingly popular comedian, one desire he has for his work apart from providing laughter is to provoke thought.  

“In my opinion the best jokes make you laugh, but also make you think." he observes. Along with the travails of being a single guy in a big city, one subject prominent in Pandya's thoughts—and, hence, his humor—is the place of race in his everyday life.  Having been born in the U.S. to Indian parents, Pandya has come up with a way of relating to experiences that has proffered plenty of chuckles.  

“Indian when convenient' sums up a large part of my persona, as an Indian American. Sometimes I lead with my Indian side; sometimes my American, hence the phrase. While there's obvious hardships having two identities, there's also privileges, so when it's convenient I exploit those ... for comedic purposes only of course. It arose out of a need to classify the duality I sometimes feel internally, and rather than only highlight the struggles of that, I want to also showcase the joy and culture I'm afforded," Pandya explains. Also, however, "This was the perfect title for my Zanies mini-special," he says of his date recorded at the Windy City comedy club.  

Pandya's musings on his heritage are hilarious in and of themselves. But his ability to make them jibe with others in a similar position and audiences overall makes his material on the subject more widely empathetic.  

Immigrant Stories 

“Not only is my material resonating with Indian Americans, but truly any second-generation immigrants who grew up here. While clearly Indian, my parents weren't fully stereotypical, so a lot of my childhood experiences also resonate with anyone who grew up here. And, I strive to make all my material, even jokes about being Indian, relatable to everyone,” Pandya offers.  

Another way I which he endeavors to be relatable to be transparent and generous in his crowd work. Training in improvisational comedy has aided Pandya in his facility in this potentially comedically dangerous undertaking.    

“I got my start as an improvisor at Second City in Chicago, so I got to watch a lot of legendary teams create entire shows based on 1 suggestion. It was always very impressive to me and I loved the callbacks to things the audience said which kept them invested in the performance. It was a personal challenge to see how long I could do crowd work for.” 

As he started headlining more and more, he often closed his shows with a few minutes of questions-and answers with the audience. “The questions they would ask and response they would give would be much deeper than the typical crowd work, since it would be after me sharing about 40-50 minutes of jokes about myself, so it made them feel comfortable sharing, too," Pandya recalls. His Impromptu Conversations, viewable on YouTube, offers a consummate example of Pandya's style of interaction.  

It's that kind of back-and forth that helps make comedy a communal activity, Pandya insists.  

“The community aspect and connecting with fans is much stronger when the audience feels like the show is one of a kind, and they are a part of it," he affirms. "It's cliche but laughter really does bring people together, and I found through these spontaneous moments at a show not only can they lead to informing folks about something, it also highlights our similarities as people. 

Getting Comfortable 

That kind of ease isn't, however, the only reason Pandya looks to be smiling more onstage nowadays than when he was first interviewed for this column in 2021.  

“It's something that came with simply being more comfortable on stage. When you start standup, you're so focused on remembering the material and saying it verbatim, you can forget how your face/body looks on stage. But the more skilled you become those start to work more in harmony, and you realize smiling or being expressive can really add to a bit as a tag. it's not that I'm happier now,” Pandya shares. “It's just I'm able to showcase more of my true self on stage and appear to be having a good time which I really am!” 

Of coming north to his evidence his evolution as a comedian, Pandya beams, "I'm excited to show you all the growth at the Improv Halloween weekend!"