Comedian and activist Russell Brand recently performed some of his best material for the Indian fans, including some jokes that were apparently too scandalous for the American audience. The English actor, who was in Bengaluru for the Chuckle Festival, said that although he did not want to get into trouble with the Indian authorities, he would be sharing some jokes that even the people at MTV cut out.
Brand had famously hosted the MTV awards in 2008, when he was still an up-and-coming comedian, and made a joke about how the then-president George Bush Jr, was a "retarded cowboy fella", which did not go down well with the American audience. Current President Barack Obama was running that term, and seeing the Black President's victory to be a positive development Brand further added, "As a representative of the global community, a visitor from abroad, I don't want to come across a little bit biased, but could I please ask of you, people of America, please elect Barack Obama, please, on behalf of the world."
Turns out, Americans were so angry with the request that many, including a man who calls himself "White Boy", sent him many death threats for interfering with America's politics. Seeing the guts of Brand, MTV decided to cut down his air-time, and thereby, his many wonderful jokes.
As it turns out, he had one for the "Twilight" movies, where he speaks of Vampire Edward's (Robert Pattinson) gratitude during Bella's (Kristen Stewart) monthly cramps and Brand goes ahead with the bit for a little longer. The Indian audience, who according to Brand are the first to hear it, laughed out loud hearing the admittedly lewd joke.
During his hour-long stand-up routine, Brand also spoke about his love for the Indian deities and the ancient Hindu scriptures. In a hilarious roller coaster of switching back and forth between stories, Russell Brand compared himself to the revolutionary Malcolm X and spoke about the insuppressible need to grab the Queen of England's boob.
Brand performed for Comedy Central India's Chuckle festival at Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru, making this his first performance in India, excluding his wedding ceremony to former wife Katy Perry (in his own words) in Rajasthan in 2010. Hosted by East India Comedy's Sanjay Manaktala, along with an opening act by Vir Das, the show was definitely one that was worth watching live.
