''The Improv'' is an

improvisational Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...

comedy show Stand-up comedy is a comedic performance to a live audience in which the performer addresses the audience directly from the stage. The performer is known as a comedian, a comic or a stand-up. Stand-up comedy consists of one-liners, stories, ...

which was started in May 2012 in

Bangalore, India Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

. The show has no script and is totally improvised, as its name suggests. The audiences give suggestions, situations and scenarios to the host and taking the cue, the actors create on-the-spot hilarious scenes on stage. It is hosted and directed by

Saad Khan Saad Khan is an Indian director, screenwriter and acting teacher and Improv comedian who works in films and web series. He is the founder and creative head of FirstAction Studios that recently merged with Mumbai-based media conglomerate Rainsh ...

, an Indian filmmaker. The show is conceptualized by Saad Khan. The show's performers are

Sal Yusuf Sal Yusuf is an Indian actor and stand-up comedian who works in Malayalam, Kannada, and Hindi-language films. Career Sal Yusuf moved from London to Banglore, where he became a stand-up comedian and is also a part of the comedy group, The Imp ...

, Darius Sunawala, Abel Mathews and Tim Schultz. The team has performed over 100 shows in

Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the capital and second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the centre of the Abu Dhabi Metropolitan Area. ...

and Sweden.

Background

The show was created in May 2012 by

. College mates, Khan and Sundar spent hours in their campus canteen performing improvisational scenes together. Such

impromptu An impromptu (, , loosely meaning "offhand") is a free-form musical composition with the character of an ''ex tempore'' improvisation as if prompted by the spirit of the moment, usually for a solo instrument, such as piano. According to ''Allgeme ...

performances in college earned them an early audience, who cheered and motivated them. After college, they pursued their respective media careers and Khan left for the US for further studies. On Khan's return to India he started Centerstage in 2011. On May 6, 2012, Centerstage launched ''The Improv'' in Bangalore which had actors on stage performing many scenes without any rehearsal or script and from situations given by the audience. Since then they have performed over 100 shows in Indian cities like

and their first overseas performance was in the

UAE The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

in April 2014. In 2016, THE IMPROV was selected and invited to the Sweden International Improv Festival that takes place at the Regina Theatre in

Uppsala Uppsala (, or all ending in , ; archaically spelled ''Upsala'') is the county seat of Uppsala County and the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, fourth-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö. It had 177,074 inha ...

every year. Saad's team was the only Indian outfit performing at SWIMP and the audiences couldn't stop raving about the show's format and energy of the improvisers. They have had shows for varied audiences like in the general public, corporate houses, college fests, and communities. The show was featured on NDTV prime for its uniqueness, production value and organic reach.

Format

Every show of The Improv has four to five rounds. Each round has a prefix ‘SHUT UP AND’. The first round is a general improvisation round called ‘SHUT UP AND IMPROV’ where a general situation, topic or location is given by the audience to the host who assigns roles and scenarios to the performers, who must improvise and perform a skit on the spot. The popular rounds of THE IMPROV are Freeze, Switch and Rotate. Freeze: Where the actors are frozen during the scene and a type of film genre or emotion is taken from the audience and the scene continues. Switch: Where 2 actors are given characters that don't get along with each other. One actor starts aggressive and the other submissive. The host calls out 'Switch' and the actors switch between these emotions. Rotate: It is an improv game for 4 actors. Each actor is assigned an occupation, type of sport, accent and place. Every time the host calls out 'Rotate' the actors shift from one position to the next.

Uniqueness

''The Improv'', though similar in its genre as the popular show ‘ ''Whose Line is it Anyway''', is quite unique indeed. The only common ground between ''The Improv'' and ‘''Whose Line is it Anyway''' is

improvisation Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...

. ''The Improv'' amalgamates acting, spontaneity, interactive banter, entertainment, group dynamic, audience involvement and live reactions. The Improv and its followers have chosen the

ring finger The ring finger, third finger, fourth finger, leech finger, or annulary is the fourth digit of the human hand, located between the middle finger and the little finger. Sometimes the term ring finger only refers to the fourth digit of a left-han ...

, also known as the ‘Other Finger’ or the ‘Finger of Happiness’, as their symbol. It is a tongue in cheek contrast to the

middle finger The middle finger, long finger, second finger, third finger, toll finger or tall man is the third digit of the human hand, located between the index finger and the ring finger. It is typically the longest digit. In anatomy, it is also called ...

and its inappropriateness. Another highlight of the show is the interactions of the host with the audience. Known for his sarcastic sense of humour, Saad Khan brings out quirky suggestions from audience members.

The team

The show is hosted and

directed Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''Di ...

and produced by Maaz Khan. The on-stage improvisational actors on the show are: * Richa Kapoor- School

teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

and actor * Darius Sunawala - RJ & Actor *

- Actor and Comedian * Tim Schultz - Writer, Actor and Comedian * Abel Mathews- Actor and Comedian * Siddharth Sundar - Actor *

Danish Sait Danish Sait (born 1 July 1988) is an Indian stand-up comedian, television host, radio jockey, actor, and writer who works in Kannada cinema. Career Danish Sait worked as a radio jockey for ''Supari'' on Fever 104 FM in 2013. On the channel, he ...

- Actor *

Sumukhi Suresh Sumukhi Suresh (born 18 October 1987) is an actor, stand-up comedian, writer and director from India. She is popularly known for her humorous sketches which she writes and stars in for live performances as well as online platforms. In an online art ...

- Comedian and actress * Praveen Raj - Comedian

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Improv Improvisational troupes Theatre companies in India