[Watch] ‘Khatti’ To Instagram: Odia Comedians Come Of Age

Bhubaneswar: As explorers of a digital universe, it’s common to find uncharted territories, that seem to pop up on the radar every once in a while. Most people move on easily, deeming these opportunities as far-fetched mirages, but a select few take a chance, making their personal expeditions through adverse, rocky terrain and end up establishing whole new civilisations.

Adult Comedy is still a taboo topic for a large part of Odia society, who love to pass their time regaling themselves with their favourite bits from ‘Mr Gulua’ and ‘Papu Pam Pam’, but seeing the popularity of Bhuvan Bam, AIB, TVF and Ashish Chanchlani among middle-class youths, some adventurous content creators in Odisha have set upon a mission to create similarly engaging content in our mother tongue, to exclusively tickle the funny bones of the natives, and help introduce the nation and the world to a uniquely Odia space.

Stallan or ‘Thatodiaguy’ is one of the ‘pioneers’ of the Odia IG scene. He says he has been struggling with comedy for the last five years, trying to find the perfect medium for his expression. “I was trying everything, making short skits, short funny movies, doing stand-up, this was all while I was studying for my engineering degree. When the Instagram reels came out, I thought about giving it a chance. It was a nowhere near-overnight success. After six to seven months, one of my random videos about “Spotify Ads in Odia” went viral and it had a snowball effect. Thankfully I already had troves of content, to keep my newfound audience engaged,” he says.

He considers his video on Odia accents as a defining moment for him, when he hopped on an existing trend, of people across the nation showing off their distinct manner of speech. “It was a trend all over India, but I didn’t see anyone making an Odia version. At that time, I didn’t give it much thought and made a funny video, but looking back I realise why it got so much love. I think a lot of teenagers and young adults felt seen and represented through that one simple reel. Then after that, the trend became viral in Odisha too.”

“I’ve tried comedy in Hindi and English but my manner of speaking felt very forced. I am most comfortable while speaking my mother tongue, and it helps create a special bond with people who watch my videos, as they understand the content and references are made exclusively for them,” he says.

Samar Pratap Nayak feels he doesn’t fit the exact requirements of an IG comedian, self-describing his feed as freewheeling observations and commentary on any facet of life that he finds interesting. Occasionally humorous, he has his own marketing company, Olive Ridley Media, the idea and inception of which brought him back to Odisha to reconnect with his roots.

“I have relatives in Odisha and I would come here to visit them every three-four years, but I spent the major part of my childhood in the South because that’s where my parents were based. Growing up I felt I lacked representation or that special connection of being an Odia. I came down here for my college and also because I wanted to start my company, Olive Ridley Media,” he says.

“At first I did face a kind of alienation, but I am inherently curious about everything and love a full-fledged conversation with a random stranger. I visited all these khattis, my favourite being the Keshari khatti. You can just sit there soaking up tea, smoke and knowledge for hours, about every aspect of life. I fell into the twang of the ‘khanti Odias’ and finally overcame my self-doubts about how we had more interesting characteristics than loving just dahi bara and pakhala. These khattis were the basis of a lot of my material in those early days,” he adds.

“Every place has its stereotypes, but I saw only a select few on any online platform delving into the real intricacies of being from Odisha. I wanted to shine a light on these eccentric mannerisms and mindsets, not to poke fun at, but just to make us visible to the rest of the country.”

“Delhiites and people from northern states used to lump us with the South, and the South thought us to be a small part of Greater West Bengal, which Bengalis enthusiastically affirmed at any chance they could get. I was exposed to these narratives anytime I mentioned being an Odia. That’s why I never shied away from using English and Hindi while talking about Odia topics because I wanted to address people from every one of these states,” he says.

“When I started there were no conversations, no scene for what we were trying to achieve. We tried to put some sentiments out on our platforms that would work as a context for creators that came five years later. I didn’t know how well it would age, and how funny it would be, but the idea was it could be a sort of research, something to build upon. I think it actually worked.”