Vir Das
Encyclopedia
Personal life
Vir Saran Das was born in DehradunDehradun
- Geography :The Dehradun district has various types of physical geography from Himalayan mountains to Plains. Raiwala is the lowest point at 315 meters above sea level, and the highest points are within the Tiuni hills, rising to 3700 m above sea level...
and has lived in Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
and studied in Indian Language School
Indian Language School
The Indian Language School or I.L.S. was established in Lagos, Nigeria in 1982 for the growing Indian community in the city under the auspices of the Indian High Commission. The principal of the school is Dr...
in Lagos, Nigeria, Shimla
Shimla
Shimla , formerly known as Simla, is the capital city of Himachal Pradesh. In 1864, Shimla was declared the summer capital of the British Raj in India. A popular tourist destination, Shimla is often referred to as the "Queen of Hills," a term coined by the British...
and Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
. He obtained a Bachelor's degree from Knox College, Illinois
Knox College, Illinois
Knox College is a four-year coeducational private liberal arts college located in Galesburg, Illinois. Knox is classified as a more selective institution by The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and is ranked 75th among liberal arts colleges by the 2011 edition of America's Best...
in Economics & Theatre with a concentration in performance. After graduating from Knox, Vir was accepted into Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in Cambridge, Massachusetts for their Stanislavsky Program in coalition with the Moscow Arts Theatre.
Career
It was at Knox that Vir first explored stand-up comedy with his first (1-1/2 hour) special, Brown Men Can't Hump, which debuted to an audience of 800 in the college's main theatre. He later went on to receive a Richter Scholarship for Theatre and the Colton Performance Award for Outstanding Achievement in Acting from Knox. He was a teaching assistant for Beginning Acting at Knox. At Harvard, Vir trained as a method actor for six months and performed eight plays with the Moscow Arts Theatre.He performed at the Habitat Center, New Delhi
India Habitat Centre
The India Habitat Centre, located in New Delhi, India, was conceived to be a catalyst relationship between individuals and institutions working in habitat related areas to increase their effectiveness...
on a visit to India. While in the USA, Vir was a cast member in three sketch comedy troupes: The Really Useless Improv, Improv Inc, and Illegal Aliens. He performed, wrote and developed 'Whose Line is it Anyway?' style comedy sketches with them. He has performed as a ship comedian aboard Carnival Cruise Line between Houston and Mexico. Furthermore, he spent time working comedy clubs in Chicago.
Vir returned to India in April 2003 and since then has performed over 100 comedy shows in all the major cities. He has debuted six (1.5 hour) comedy specials written, directed by and starring him at the India Habitat center to audiences of over 900 a night. These include Brown Men Can't Hump, Not for Members Only, Bored of The Things!, Who Let the Das Out?, Son of a Switch! and VIRagra. Every one of these shows has sold out within a matter of days.
Vir started his career on TV when he hosted two TV shows on Zoom Channel. The first one was Is Route Ki Sabhin Linein Maast Hain where he was an agony uncle. The second was his own stand-up comedy late night show Ek Rahin Vir. Although early for their time, they got noticed and put Vir on the comedic map in India. Vir has also hosted Top Drive getaway for Star World.
Vir's comedy can be viewed on TV in many genres of entertainment. He hosted Cricket Firsts, a sports comedy show on Zee Sports (now TEN Action+). He did improvisational comedy on SAB TV
SAB TV
SAB TV is an Indian general entertainment television channel that is owned by Multi Screen Media Pvt. Ltd and based in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It was launched on April 23, 2000 by Sri Adhikari Brothers as a general entertainment channel. In 2003, it was repositioned as a comedy-centric channel...
's Lo Kar Lo Baat. He was an addition to the cast of The Great Indian Comedy Show
The Great Indian Comedy Show
Originally The Great Indian Comedy Show, The Comedy Show ha ha ha is a half-hour stand-up and sketch comedy show in Hindi. The program was first aired in October 2004. The program, hosted by various members of the ensemble, others to host include: winners of The Great Indian Laughter Challenge...
on STAR One
STAR One
STAR One is an Indian television channel that primarily broadcasts Hindi entertainment based in Mumbai. Launched on 1 November 2004 with its show, Remix, the channel gained in popularity with television shows such as Remix, The Great Indian Laughter Challenge, Nach Baliye, Sarabhai vs Sarabhai,...
. He can be seen anchoring Now Not Showing on CNN-IBN.
Most importantly, Vir is the host of News on the Loose, his own news comedy show on CNBC-TV18
CNBC-TV18
CNBC-TV18 is a business news channel broadcast in India based in Mumbai. The channel was launched in India on December 7, 1999. It was the first business news channel launched in India and still the leads that genre....
. The show is a huge hit amongst Indian audiences for its fearless brand of intelligent comedy. News on the Loose was recently given its own weekly half-hour special News On The Loose - Weekend on CNBC-TV18, which went on to become a hit.
Vir was cast as the comic relief by bagging one of the principal characters in The Curse of King Tut's Tomb, a Hallmark mini-series filmed in India. He began filming for his first two Bollywood roles in early 2006. He can be seen in Vipul Shah's hit movie Namastey London
Namastey London
Namastey London is a 2007 Bollywood film. The romantic comedy film is directed by Vipul Amrutlal Shah and stars Akshay Kumar and Katrina Kaif. It also stars Rishi Kapoor, Upen Patel and Clive Standen in supporting roles. Riteish Deshmukh has a cameo role in the film...
.
The Indian Express has called him 'a comedian to watch out for' and 'India's Answer to Jay Leno'. The Hindustan Times calls him 'simply hysterical'. Delhi Times has listed him as one of Delhi's Top Ten Dream Men. The Pioneer has called him 'The Funniest Kid in India'. Verve has called him 'India's only true comic'.
Vir has approximately 35 plays, over 100 stand-up comedy shows, 8 TV shows, 2 movies and 6 comedy specials behind him. He is writing comedic columns for Femina
Femina
Femina is a Latin noun meaning 'woman'.It is the title of five magazines:*Femina , a fortnightly women's magazine owned by the Times Group and published in India since July 1959*Femina , the first women's magazine in Indonesia...
, Maxim
Maxim (magazine)
Maxim is an international men's magazine based in the United Kingdom and known for its pictorials featuring popular actresses, singers, and female models, sometimes pictured dressed, often pictured scantily dressed but not fully nude....
, Exotica
Exotica
Exotica is a musical genre, named after the 1957 Martin Denny album of the same title, popular during the 1950s to mid-1960s, typically with the suburban set who came of age during World War II. The musical colloquialism, exotica, means tropical ersatz: the non-native, pseudo experience of Oceania...
, DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
and Tehelka
Tehelka
Tehelka is an Indian weekly political magazine under the editorship of Tarun Tejpal known for its undercover exposé style of journalism. Its cover price is Rs 20 per issue. The publication began in 2000 as a news website, Tehelka.com...
.
Filmography
- Delhi Belly, 2011, as Arup
- Badmaash CompanyBadmaash CompanyBadmaash Company is a 2010 Bollywood film directed by actor-turned-director Parmeet Sethi, produced by Aditya Chopra and starring Shahid Kapoor, Anushka Sharma, Meiyang Chаng and Vir Das in the lead roles...
, 2010, as Chandu - Love Aaj KalLove Aaj KalLove Aaj Kal is a 2009 Bollywood film starring Saif Ali Khan and Deepika Padukone in lead roles with Rahul Khanna, Rishi Kapoor and Giselli Monteiro in supporting roles. The film is directed by Imtiaz Ali and produced by Saif Ali Khan and Dinesh Vijan...
, 2009, as Shonty - Mumbai CallingMumbai CallingMumbai Calling is a British-Indian comedy series, starring Sanjeev Bhaskar, set in the fictional Teknobable call centre in Mumbai. The series was shot on location in India. The pilot first aired on ITV on 30 May 2007...
, 2008–09, as a call center attendant (seven episodes) - Namastey LondonNamastey LondonNamastey London is a 2007 Bollywood film. The romantic comedy film is directed by Vipul Amrutlal Shah and stars Akshay Kumar and Katrina Kaif. It also stars Rishi Kapoor, Upen Patel and Clive Standen in supporting roles. Riteish Deshmukh has a cameo role in the film...
, 2007, guest appearance - Mumbai SalsaMumbai Salsa (film)Mumbai Salsa is an 2007 Bollywood film directed by Manoj Tyagi.-Plot:This movie is about four pairs who meet accidentally in a Mumbai bar called Mumbai Salsa and get hooked on each other for life.It captures the urban qualities of life and love....
, 2007, as Rajeev
TV shows
- News On The Loose, 2007–present, as himself
- Now Not Showing With Vir Das, 2006, as himself
- Cricket Firsts 2004
- Sabhin Linein Maast Hain 2003
- Ripping the Decade 2010
Shows/Performances
- History of IndiaHistory of IndiaThe history of India begins with evidence of human activity of Homo sapiens as long as 75,000 years ago, or with earlier hominids including Homo erectus from about 500,000 years ago. The Indus Valley Civilization, which spread and flourished in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent from...
, 2010–present - Walking On Broken Das, 2009–present
- HAMateur Night, 2009–present
- Weirdass, 2008–present
- Ek Rahen Bir, 2007
- Brown Men Can't Hump, 2004
- Not for Members Only, 2004
- Bored of The Things! 2004
- Who Let the Das Out? 2003
- Son of a Switch! 2003
- VIRagra, 2003