Ahead of her performance in Mumbai, Jamie Lever dives into everything about comedy

Jamie Lever

This is that time in Jamie Lever's comedy calendar when she's revising her act, tweaking jokes, adding something and subtracting what doesn't work. The last-minute changes are on, as the comedienne gears up for The Jamie Lever Show in the city in less than a week. Giving her company in her pursuit is her uncle and mentor, Jimmy Moses. "I spent three months working on the script. My uncle has been with me throughout. As they say, comedy is a serious business," she begins.

Lever shares she consciously approaches even a dancing reel on Instagram with the same sincerity. "A lot of young girls are looking up to me. I get messages like, ‘Didi, I'm inspired by you. We want to be multifaceted like you.' So, I want to ace every performance, whether I am with Salman Khan on Bigg Boss or I am making a small reel," she explains.

Naturally, there are consequences, or compromises as Lever, one of the busiest comediennes in the country, puts it. I compromise a lot in my personal life. I've reached an age where one should have kids. There are these thoughts like ‘I've come so far, but I don't have a lot of things that my friends have.' But I give priority to comedy," she says. "The only way I have come this far is because I have the luxury of time and the freedom because I'm single."

If today her goal is to inspire younger women, the 20-something Lever had a far more personal one. "When I began, my fight was just to prove myself, to prove that I deserve to be here. My dad also said, ‘Tu thodi na paise ke liye kaam kar rahi hai. But if you want to be in this field, you have to prove yourself.'"

She recalls how protective he had been as a father, and how it surprised her that when the time came, he took a step back and let her take the stage. "He was shocked when I shared my wish to be a comedienne. I remember I was in the UK, doing a Masters in Marketing. I had a job. So, he had no idea. I also used to think that I might not get the permission to do it, and that I didn't have what it takes to be a comic."

"Since childhood, he has been very protective. He had a lot of rules: no sleepovers or trips, no coming home late. From there, to letting me be in this field and lending me his support the way he did was a big shift. When I decided that I was going to work in this field, my mother was surprised by how my dad's heart just changed. He let me go out of his protective arms. My mother says that he changed as a human. He told me, ‘I could see some talent in you and I don't want to be the one to stop that.'"

Today, of course, the father-daughter duo performs on stage, another anomaly in a society where despite several female star kids, the expectation remains that the male child will continue his father's legacy. "Growing up I didn't even have any examples of a comedian's daughter making it in comedy," she says. It was around 2012 that Lever began her career, performing at The Comedy Store, Mumbai. She made her television debut on the 2013 season of Comedy Circus, titled Comedy Circus Ke Mahabali.

While her father let her out from under his wings, his surname went with her, and Lever confesses it has brought immense privilege. "When I started my journey, I automatically had a fan following, which I did not have to work for. And that happens with star kids," she says.

Being her father's daughter also means easy acceptance from within the industry. Over the last few years, Lever has risen to popularity mimicking several Bollywood celebrities like Farah Khan, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Sonam Kapoor and the late Asha Bhosle.

"I get a lot of support from the industry because everybody feels ‘Yeh toh apne Johnny bhai ki beti hai'. In fact, so many people tell me to mimic them. Once, Usha Uthup ji called me, saying, ‘You have mimicked Asha [Bhonsle], do me too.' Javed Akhtar called me to his house and asked me to perform for him and Shabana ji," she shares. But the comedienne is mindful that impersonations don't turn into insults.

"I have always been clear that I can't disrespect my father's colleagues or his fans. Just imagine if I were to do below-the-belt comedy, it would be so disturbing for his fans," she says, adding, "My dad always told me, ‘Don't take advantage of this privilege'."