Rishabh Suri (HINDUSTAN TIMES; May 3, 2020)

She has been making India laugh for a decade now, but Bharti Singh still finds comedy a very difficult task. On World Laughter Day, today, we ask the comedienne, 35, how important a role does laughter play in our lives, especially during the current crisis. Pat comes her reply, “There’s this situation in India, what do I say about laughter amid all this? There are those who worry about what to eat tomorrow or even in the next hour. There’s no laughter in their lives. But I get messages from people with cable connections… Agar hamari chhoti baat pe yeh log hans dete hain, toh humein bahut duayein milengi... We’ll try our best to make people laugh.”

Singh adds that though she has been doing comedy for 10 years, it didn’t start off as anything serious. “Earlier, I used to do it just for fun... But, today, it’s tougher to make people laugh. Our lives are so stressful,” she says.

Meanwhile, Singh and her husband, writer Haarsh Limbachiyaa, are trying to add some laughter to people’s lives during the Coronavirus lockdown with a show shot entirely at home. From the script to the camera work, everything is done by the duo. She shares, “People are loving Hum, Tum Aur Quarantine... We had just shifted into a new house and don’t have any house help. Shooting, editing, sab karna padta hai! During meal times, we contemplate whether to eat or shoot. The work starts in the morning, and goes on till the next day. It’s a small effort to help people forget their stress.”