“When I Am On Stage, The Audience Is My Friend With Whom I Share Gossip”: Sumukhi Suresh

Sumukhi Suresh has recently returned from a very successful stint at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2024 in the UK. She was there with her stand-up special, ‘Hoemonal’. Making her debut on the world-renowned stage, which has catapulted the careers of icons like Rachel Weisz, Rowan Atkinson, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Alan Rickman and more, Suresh delivered a performance that captivated audiences. For the Indian comedian, the Fringe was not just an international platform, but a place to where she could hone her craft and grow with some of the finest talents in global entertainment.

Known for her work in Pushpavalli and the YouTube series, Behti Naak, Suresh’s humour draws deeply from her personal life which allows her to be relatable. Her comedic style is characterised by sharp wit, observational humour, and a knack for finding humour in everyday situations. Her versatility in different mediums has solidified her in India’s comedy scene and entertainment industry. She is often hailed as “India’s Tina Fey” due to her success as a writer, actor, and comedian.

We spoke to her about her Edinburgh Fringe experience, her stand-up special, Hoemonal, and global relatability of her content.

Edited excerpts

1. How did you get to participate in the Edinburgh Fringe 2024?

I remember that last time a bunch of us stand-up comics went—Sapan Verma, Biswa Kalyan Rath and Urooj Ashfaq. Steve Lock, Head of Comedy at Soho Theatre had mentioned that it would be nice if I did the Fringe. But at that time, I was doing a London leg of my ‘Hoemonal’ tour. This year, in January, they reached out, and I said yes! I was very excited about bringing it to the Fringe. The biggest challenge for me was to concise the show, which usually runs for an hour and 45 minutes, into a strict 55-minute format for Edinburgh Fringe. It was quite daunting, but a good problem to have—choosing the best parts to present.

2. How was the experience at Edinburgh Fringe different from your other international tours?

Fringe equalises everyone, regardless of where you’re from, and how well you do. Only the content of your show and your performance matters. Everyone starts on an equal footing, and as the reviews come in, as your show evolves, people start talking about it.

It feels almost old-school, in a good way—you’re not caught up in managing tickets or logistics. Instead, it’s all about the art.” Secondly, it’s just a community of many artists—not just stand-up, stand-up is a very small percentage of the Fringe. There are musicals, improv shows, plays and one-woman shows. Just watching the shows gives you so much inspiration, I even started writing my second special after Hoemonal. It really sparked my creativity.

3. The pedigree at the Fringe stands out, imagine Phoebe Waller-Bridge performed Fleabag here first, it must be inspiring.

Imagine the calibre of performers who’ve graced that stage. Robin Williams started here in 1971 and was one of the Fringe winners. Emma Thompson is another, and Nanette by Hannah Gadsby also made waves at the Fringe. Seeing these names, no matter what they won or what really happened, it’s thrilling to be on the same platform as these stalwarts. If I could be even one per cent of Emma Thompson, oh my God, I’d die!”

4. What was the response at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2024?

The show begins with me talking about how I started dating again at 30 after a breakup. People kept telling me that it’s harder for women over 30 years to find a partner and that my chances of dying alone were high and at that time I would panic. So, part of my journey has been figuring out how to make dying alone seem cool.

This resonated a lot with the audience at the Edinburgh Fringe. What I liked about the show was that so many girls who live alone turned up for the show. A bunch of 10-15 girls turned up alone for the show and they just got along at the show. One of the girls, who came to the show and lived about 25-30 kilometres away from Edinburgh said, “I’m so glad I came because I was feeling very jittery that this is the end, I’m going to die alone.” I also loved the boys who came for the show. I tease them asking what happened, “Who sent you here as a prank?’ But they always surprise me by saying, ‘No, we’re fans!’”

5. How challenging was it to prepare for Hoemonal, which focuses on many unspoken women’s physical and mental health issues a comedic spin?

I think the previous special that I did, Don’t Tell Amma, required more preparation, and I felt the need to fix it here and there because I wasn’t as natural on stage as I am now. With Hoemonal, I let go of a lot of my hang-ups about what stand-up is supposed to be, or what my performance should be. The perception that I want to give the audience is that you’re my friend and I’m telling you a story—gossiping, really. The closer I am to my real self on stage, the more authentic the whole set is. The audience believes the person they’re listening to is as authentic as possible.

6. What was writing the Hoemonal set like?

With Hoemonal, I just wanted to express how bad I am at owning my sexuality. It’s not just me, but it’s tough for many women, as we weren’t raised like this. It started with my hormonal imbalances, which were off the charts, and a conversation with my gynaecologist. I have PCOS, I have a hormonal imbalance, plus I’m in my 30s. I have PCOS, a hormonal imbalance, and I’m in my thirties, which brings up an avalanche of questions, including doubts about motherhood and what that means for my identity as a woman. The first half is all funny, while the second half is more sombre. I don’t leave you actually with laughter; it is a bittersweet end. I’ve not tried to make a joke about it but presented it exactly how I’m experiencing it

7. Is women’s perspective on situations a core theme for you?

I didn’t start that with that agenda, but I’ve realised that it is something I like doing. Like with Pushpavalli, I spoke about a stalker, a female stalker, who is obsessed with a guy and the emotion I was exploring was honestly insecurity. With Hoemonal, it’s the difficult topics of PCOS and hormonal imbalance that many times people tend to shut out.

8. How did you tackle your health issues?

When I got my hormone report, the aim was to figure out why I weighed 120 kgs despite working out and eating right. I blamed myself that I’m lazy and I’m unable to take care of myself. My whole outlook changed when I finally understood what my body was trying to tell me. I had a tough time with food in Edinburgh, but I realised that my body needed sustenance, which was more important than just freaking out about my diet. My body was like, “I want food and then you work out however much you want to; you need to feed me carbs today.”

If you would have asked me five years back, I would have laughed at the thought of listening to my body. But it’s so important because there are too many factors and lifestyle disorders messing with our bodies. Imagine—our hormones are working against us.

9. Tell us the top three things at Edinburgh that really stood out for you

I think the constant bagpiping by the local pipers was beautiful; it’s as if your own background music while you walk around. I love that you can walk around a lot here marvelling at the architecture and the cool monuments. The third reason is very personal, my best friend from college lives in Edinburgh.