The death of humour

I work for a bpo now and after having spent some three weeks in process training, I realise that there is a genuine dearth of funny people in my training batch. This is bad, very bad, especially for someone like me who survives on humour. I need wit and humour the way most people need oxygen. And I love laughing, which is perhaps why I make it a point to surround myself with funny people. The brand of humour in the training rooms is restricted to those that have an underlying sexual connotation or those that are plain silly. Such jokes achieve the purpose though; everyone's laughing. And laughing real loud. But wit and timing seem to be a thing of the past.

I would like to think of myself as a funny person; but the truth is that I am not. I am the kind that catalyzes the funniness in another. It's like this : pair me up with someone funny, and I'll probably come up with whacky ideas and situations, but the actual jokes come from the other person. I contribute by laughing and the fact that people find my laughter appealing (their words, not mine), definitely helps. But I have pretty much come across a dead end in my training room; the silly jokes just continue, and while I continue to laugh (in a tone that is reminiscent of tinkling bells or wind chimes..hehe..Linda Goodman's words this time), my heart continues to grieve over the death of wit.

This post is dedicated to all the wit masters I have had the privilege of laughing with till date :

Abhi : Let's start with my brother. He's witty, real witty. The funnest moments I have spent at home were in his company. And there weren't too many of those, considering that my mom sent him away to stay with my grandma. But I always cherish the time I spend with him. He is very observant and his humour is more like the Jerry Seinfeld brand of humour (and he even cracks jokes the way he would if he were part of a stand-up routine). He is knowledgable about most things; consequently, the jokes are pretty varied as well. He's in Dubai now; yet the wit comes through even during chats. He's talented as well. So there's this cartoon strip that he's created, which was really hilarious. And a book that he's writing..a draft of which he sent me..very good stuff indeed. Shall share it all with you guys sometime soon.

Umme : My best friend. She isn't funny intentionally; it's just that she's plain whacky. And being plain whacky myself, we constantly keep cracking up on weird things. Strange things keep happening to her or so it seems. Do you guys remember that character 'Phoebe' from FRIENDS? That's Umme for you..its like she's forever on a different planet. Everytime I feel sad or restless, I just call her up and before I know it, I am giggling away to glory. Its good to have a friend who can do that to you.

Simon : A Junior College friend, who I haven't had the opportunity of meeting ever since I passed out. But we keep in touch through chats (which is, almost everyday). And his wit defies description. He's got a funny take on most things, and it's a subtle, yet effective sense of humour. He never comes up with stuff himself. I continuously have to keep prodding him on myself (probably bcos he can't hear my tinkling laughter over a chat window..;-)). He isn't funny, he's plain witty. And very sarcy. I simply enjoy talking to him.

Aarthi : An ex-colleague. I used to hang around with her constantly; we'd even go home together. She's always got that sparkle in her eyes when there's some joke that is simply waiting to burst out of her. She's enormous fun to be with. And she's at her funniest best when she has any kind of throat infection, 'cos then she gets all irritated and comes out with brilliantly sarcy jokes.

Pat : She rules in the sarcy humour category. She's a great person to be with, simply b'cos she's sure to find something or the other utterly ridiculous and the way she expresses her indignation has afforded us many laughs. Her Hindi sucks, so if she's ranting and raving in Hindi, we just double up with laughter. She's very expressive and one person I truly enjoy being with. She has a very sharp sense of humour and her take on the messy state in which most things are, has kept me in splits ever since I first got to know her.

Vivek : Ex-boss. I always thought 'Vivek' meant 'wit' and thought he had a very apt name. He later disclosed that 'Vivek' actually meant 'discrimination' and the name seemed less apt then. But still, we are talking about his sense of humour now. So let's stick to that. He is enormously funny. I must confess that the only reason I'd take any interest in office meetings was b'cos he was bound to be there and the moment he opened his mouth to speak, the fun sessions would start. I am sure he'll be reading this blog and will have second thoughts about my efficiency. But you have to know him to understand what real wit is all about. I still remember one particluar incident when we were having a grammar session for the Editors and after reading one particularly complicated sentence, he remarked " wow, there are so many 'which's in here, it seems like 'Macbeth'" (or something to that effect). I simply burst out laughing. Now do you see what I mean about his wit?

That's all for now....And a big thank-you to all for making the earth a funnier place to live in..