Comedian Aditi Mittal gets her analogy spot on when she says, "Stand-up has become like the guitar of our generation. Everyone's like, 'Arre haan, main utha ke kar loonga, no problem.'" This would seem obvious to anyone who's not Rip Van Winkle. Week in and week out, the city hosts enough shows and open-mic events to flood the websites of ticketing platforms, with new names popping up like ads on an android phone.

But what goes into the building of a successful routine? How do you overcome nerves when getting up on stage? And what's the best way of tackling an unresponsive audience? These are some of the questions that Mittal will address at a two-day workshop this weekend, where she will guide participants about the serious business of stand-up comedy, explaining how it isn't fun and games all the time.