‘I was fired in three months’: Vir Das about his first VJ gig in Mumbai

Vir Das is one of the most sought-after comedians in the world, selling out shows like hot cakes. With an ambition of becoming a global comic sensation, Vir Das recalled his humble beginnings when he sat for a candid chat with mid-day Sit with Hitlist. He recalled how he landed in Mumbai, got his first gig as a VJ and got fired within three months. He also opened up about his growing up years in Nigeria and being the ‘loser’ kid in school.

Vir Das recalls growing up in Nigeria

Talking of his family background and growing up in Nigeria, Vir shares, “My grandfather was a bureaucrat. My grandfather is an IPS, IAS, attached to the Prime Minister`s office. He then became an IFS, India`s first ambassador to Bhutan, then Chairman Airports Authority, then Chairman of Air India, then gets a Padmashree and retired. Brajbir Saran Das, a very decorated, honoured diplomat.”

Talking of his dad, he shares, “My dad is a St. Stephen`s rebel and wanted to not do the diplomat thing. He got a job with a food processing company in Nigeria. So, I left when I was 11 months old from Dehradun. I was born in Dehradun. I was raised there (Nigeria) till 8-9. There`s a lovely school there called the Indian Language School, which is run by Indians. It`s a bigger school now. Back then, it was not a great school.”

He reveals he was then moved to Sanaa and that his parents were in Nigeria for 17 years, but when he was in class 11, they came back to India.

Vir Das on being fired as a VJ

Vir Das opened up about how he landed in the city of dreams, sharing that it all happened in one week. He recalls the series of incidents, saying, “It all happened in one week. So there`s a socialite in Delhi. Trisha, my sister, and I got invited to her party. In the middle of the party, she was like, ‘Ladies and gentlemen, we have a comedian with us this evening. And one coffee table was put aside. Like a parrot. I was given to perform. I performed for 10 minutes in this lady`s living room, and I kind of did okay without a mic, nothing.”

Recalling the very moment he shares, “And I remember Trisha and me looking at each other like, ‘We`re from Noida. I don`t think we belong in this setting.’” He further shares, “Sudheera sat here. She`s like, ‘Will you come to my office tomorrow morning?’ Because I`d done the Delhi Times food with her. And she was like, ‘You need to get out of Delhi tomorrow. You are too talented for this city. You will peak here and you`ll wind up like these people.’”

He adds, “And she gave me the Times Food Awards hosting gig in Bombay. And I show up in Bombay and I`m in Times of India guest house in Pali Hill, which is a lovely neighbourhood, lovely guest house.”

He further recalls, “I`ve never met anybody in Bollywood before. And I`m emceeing and I`m doing jokes. First time I met Jackie Shroff. So Jackie Shroff says 40 things to me. I don`t understand a word he says just because I`m so starstruck. Then I met Aishwarya Rai.”

He adds, “And then I met just five, six Bollywood actors. And the next morning, I get summoned to VT station, and Vinit and Sameera are there. And they`re like, we`re starting a channel called Zoom. You`re going to be a VJ. I`m like, ‘Great, what`s a VJ? I have no idea.’ They said, ‘Don’t worry. We`ll figure it out. We`ll train you.’”

“I moved to Bombay next week. And I did a VJ gig on Zoom. I was fired in three months because I`m a terrible VJ,” he shared.

Vir says he was a ‘loser’ in school

When asked if there is a personality type to be a comedian, Vir has an instant and straightforward answer, "Loser or cool kid. There are only two kinds.” He further explains, “In my boarding school, Papa CJ was head boy, coolest kid in school. But he became a comic, and then I`m the loser who nobody remembers us in the school.”

Sharing how he got into comedy, he shares, “I found a stage when I was in class 8, class 9.” Interestingly, Vir participated in a debating tournament in IIT Delhi, ‘Clash of the titans’. He showed up at the tournament among some of the champions, cracked some amazing jokes and won right there. 

Vir says, “You put me under hot lights, you give me like some creaky floorboards and some dust with a spotlight. It just flows.”