Lesson makes for textbook comedy and laughter

Self-confessed narcissist and stand-up comic Vir Das brings the acclaimed comedy 'History of India Vir'itten' to Johannesburg audiences

Performer Vir Das has a thrilling history lesson planned for his audience - he will add his dose of craziness to the great moments of Indian history.

He plays the lead in Ashvin Gidwani's hit production, History of India Vir'itten.

Das, 34, was born in Lagos, Nigeria, and pursued a career in the arts because he always knew he "belonged in the limelight".

"The stage is the one place I've always been completely at home. From my childhood days it's the one thing I knew how to do - getting on stage isn't a job for me ... it's coming home."

Das said his play chronicled the greatest moments in Indian history through stand-up comedy.

"It begins with historical fact and tumbles into something crazy. Just imagine that the history teacher in school was really high - this is a lesson you won't want to miss," he said.

"I've been a History Channel buff for as long as I can remember. I also studied political science in college, so that kind of got me started."

Das, who lives in India, once saw British comedian Eddie Izzard doing a show about everything from Plato to Caesar - and realised it was possible to do comedy about boring subjects and create absurd sketches and zany voices. This is how the idea for History of India Vir'itten was born.

"Since I was eight years old I believed that if you can laugh at it, you can live through it. That applies to religion, our history and all our conflicts, and this is the message of the show."

He said he owed his love for the stage to a unique combination of narcissism, the overwhelming desire to be someone else and "a slowly timed release of an internal clown and vodka".

Das has also performed in Politricks, Walking On Broken Das, Hamateur Night and Weirdass.

This will be his first visit to South Africa and he is "mad excited" about it.

History of India Vir'itten will be staged in the Nelson Mandela Theatre at the Joburg Theatre Complex from May 30 to June 1.