Her name has a nice ring to it. It’s not a common name here in America or the country of her birth. Easy to pronounce, easier to connect, Zarna Garg could be anyone’s chatty, fun-loving neighbor. That is if one doesn’t know that she is now a celebrity stand-up comic—conquering hearts spotlighting one bindi at a time. Of course, you can’t reuse a sticker.
My first ever visit to a live comedy show had to happen with Zarna’s show 'Practical People' in San Francisco’s iconic Cobb’s Comedy club. The day after Thanksgiving seemed like the perfect night to be there for my fellow desi mom. I had heard about Cobb's Comedy Club—originally known as Cobb's Pub—from my adult son. It has seen many comics since it opened in 1982. When I was asked if I wanted to go to Zarna’s show
a few weeks ago, I burst out laughing in excitement. That may be a bit of an exaggeration, but I was definitely smiling ear-to-ear in anticipation.
Lining up early on Chestnut street, I was glad to have been better prepared for San Francisco’s notorious chilly weather. I was not leaving my chance to grab a good seat. Then, it was kind of fun to see the surprised faces of people who were showing up late. The line had winded around the street. It struck me that not only Indian Americans, the crowd had people from diverse backgrounds and ethnicities. She was surely hitting some universal human chords.
After a boisterous welcome fit for a rockstar, Zarna threw down punches after punches and had the audience in splits. I was admiring her effortless presence on stage. Her impromptu interactions with random members of the audience proved that she had honed her comic sense and timing. Being my first time at such a show, I enjoyed every minute of it. Her expressions were as good as her material, if not better.
I have always loved watching stand-up comedy specials and shows like The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. They serve as my instantaneous go-to mood-lifters. You just can’t sit with such shows and mull over your worries and fears even if they are talking about just those topics. You are happy to know you are not alone. Here is a person harboring similar thoughts, but she has chosen to make fun of it. She is a normal mom, raising normal kids, having normal problems. Let us laugh together at the issues instead.
I remember Zarna’s videos showing up on my social media during Covid years. Then came her Prime special. Here was someone so relatable. You see someone like you mouthing something you would say; the connection is pure and sure. She is fully embracing her Indian-ness in America with her salwar and kurta and bindi. Doubling down on her heritage she has made a space for herself in a field where no Indian American mom had gone before. Talking about mangalsutras and karva chauths to the section of the audience who looked like they had no clue about them, she even dished out risqué jokes on her near ones with chutzpah. I guess that is expected of a stand-up comic. She was playing by the rules while flaunting them. Like only Zarna can!
Every group of friends or family has that one person who can make a room laugh out loud. Indians thrive on gatherings of all sorts. From pre-wedding events to weddings to baby-naming ceremonies, there are celebrations galore. Where there is a feast, entertainment from casual conversations definitely ensues. Zarna seemed to be part of such a gathering at the club. She just figured out how to get paid for her wisecracks.
This endearing mom of three dished out stories of her life like she had stolen them from every other Indian household. From living rooms to live shows, her journey is very inspiring. She has no qualms about being the only one of her kind.She is more about her bindaas attitude than just her bindi.
Zarna seemed to represent the highly ignored section of the population—the talented stay-at-home moms. It didn’t matter to her where she was using her talent when she was unknown. Be it her kitchen, a park, neighborhood parties or zoom parties, she knew she was funny. She was more than ready when the time came to spread her wings. Kudos to her kids for encouraging her to take up funny as a career, being supportive and showing up at the venue. It was truly heartening to see them at the door after the show selling their mom’s merchandise. Zarna surely must have traded off regular mom things for her big weekend in San Francisco.
There is always a price to pay for some praiseworthy things. And this is her time to shine and claim her worth--turkey or no turkey.
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