Favorite comedians (or comedy specials) of all time? 

George Carlin and Richard Pryor. Richard Pryor: Live on the Sunset Strip is the greatest solo show of all time! This was his first concert after he had that incident where he almost died from freebasing cocaine. You can see he is in the midst of a crossroads in his life. He confesses about his addiction and he is so honest. There has never been an artist this honest in a performance. His bit about going back to Africa is beautiful, and Pryor bares his soul in that concert. You can feel him struggling with being vulnerable but it’s a brilliant performance by a master. 

Who is an artist who inspires you—an artistic role model or artistic hero? 

I’d say the great filmmaker Satyajit Ray because he was a trailblazer, an innovator, with lots of courage. While India was immersed in shallow escapist Bollywood films, he made films that touched the soul and were heartfelt. He went against the grain. He was brave in trying to create films that showed how the Bengalis in villages live a humble life. He showed the beauty, the poetry of how the village people existed in a world where they were dismissed by the upper class. He was like Picasso on film. His films of Bengali people were breathtaking as he gave the people a humanity that was missing. He gave a voice to those who never got a chance to be heard. His films provided a glimpse to the forgotten people of India. While Bollywood glamorized the upper class in India, Ray’s films of the common people were breathtaking. His films of the lower caste were captivating. His films showed Bengali people in an authentic way, unlike most films in India that did not go near social commentary. 

His approach to art is something I try my best to achieve as a writer and performer. He left a body of work that challenged the status quo yet made Bengalis human when no else cared how we lived.

Who is your funniest family member? 

My mother. She had great timing but never really knew how funny she was. She was an outsider here in America, but her observations about America were hilarious. Like when I was a kid, I tried to share my love of baseball with her, but she kept on saying, “Why do I want to watch a bunch of grown men in pajamas playing with sticks?”

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever gotten? Who gave it to you? 

My father. He said, “Just find someone who loves you. I don’t care what color or what religion they are—just make sure they are good to you. And don’t be a bum. Find someone and something you love and work hard.” It was simple, but these are words to live by. 

What food reminds you of home? 

Whenever I smell curry, it reminds me of home! Samosas especially. Lamb biryani and daal make me feel like I’m in mother’s kitchen again. I feel like I’m five years old again. 

Favorite New York City subway stop on the MTA? 

The 4 Train to 161st Street–Yankee Stadium. Like I say in the play, there is an excitement as the train is approaching the stadium. When you see that little opening in the park, it’s like a tease, a preview of hope into a world like Oz or like you are going to see Willy Wonka and the chocolate factory. I felt like that as a little kid, and I still get excited when that 4 Train goes to Yankee Stadium. It is like catching a glimpse of heaven. 

What is your dream? 

I’m in grad school and I’d like to graduate. That is my short-term goal. My long-term dream is simple: I would love to continue writing and performing stories that give joy and a humanity to people who haven’t been represented with dignity and humanity in film, TV, and theatre. I’d like to stop this minstrel show of demonizing Muslims and immigrants as the boogieman and to create a world where I can show that our stories are profound and captivating. Not to mention funny! I’d just like to keep working nonstop. That would be a nice dream come true. 

What’s surprised you most about working on this play? 

Just how exhausting it is to perform it. It is grueling. Also, just how much I’m learning each day of what my parents went through. It’s one thing to have academic conversations about history, but when you are inhabiting characters, you are embodying those characters every night. I’m reliving their journey and I’m feeling it. I feel I’m going so deep into character sometimes it’s like they are channeling through me. 

We take our parents for granted. I know I did. I’m a New Yorker born and bred to the 10th power. Having to play immigrants each night has given me a deeper appreciation of my parents’ generation, who came to this country with nothing and built a foundation so I can live a better life. As children we don’t think about immigration that much. My identity was always as a New Yorker who loved the Yankees and hip-hop. Playing my parents and the many other colorful characters in this play has made me feel a connection to all immigrants. What parents left behind and what they had to sacrifice is what I’m still learning about. This play is forcing me to marinate all those complicated feelings that immigrants confront, and many times conceal, in order to create a better life for their children. These revelations are moving, but they happen sometimes right there on that stage when I’m performing. Sometimes when the show is over, I have to take a moment backstage to let it process. It’s something I didn’t expect when I began writing this, but every night I feel that.

Reprinted with permission from Hartford Stage.

Photo by Mohammed Amir Hamza.