Religious and racial minorities have always had a strong tradition in comedy - their outsider status allowing them a unique perspective to poke fun at the dominant culture and the weirdness of immigrant life. Here are SBS Life's best picks for the , and the best young Australian comedians of colour tackling dinner party no-no's like race, identity and religion.
Shubha Siva
(Contains explicit language)
Debut festival comedian tackles everything from the moroseness of her parent's arranged marriage to the pain of Brazilian laser waxing. Her show Hive Mind "explores how an individual can feel obsessively compelled to stand out, to fit in, and to lead an important and meaningful life, despite overwhelming evidence that such things may not even be possible." But as she assures us "that may sound horrible and depressing, but it’s actually wonderful news".
Dilruk Jayasinha
moved to Australia from Sri Lanka at the age of 19 and skipped a career in accounting to take up comedy. His acerbic take on life as a half- Buddhist, half-Muslim Sri Lankan student immigrant is peppered with prolific swearing and hilarious reflections on Australian politics and culture.
Suren Jayemanne
From visiting yoga studios presided over by white instructors named Lakshmi to life as part of an interracial couple, keeps it real with wry observational humour on the absurdity and contradictions of everyday life.
Frida Deguise
Lebanese-Australian 's bawdy and earthy sense of humour tackles life as self-described 'wogan' (wog+bogan) mum of four from Punchbowl. She riffs off everything from being tailed by security detail while screaming at her kids in Arabic in her minivan, to class and 'Lebo' life in the western suburbs of Sydney.
Nazeem Hussain
You're in safe hands with veteran Australian comedian , known for his TV show Legally Brown. A guaranteed crowd pleaser, the exuberant comedian takes audiences for a rollicking ride with subversive storytelling and hot takes on life as an Australian Muslim, as well as Islamophobia, terrorism and culture.
Matt Okine
Fresh out of production on his television adaption of his award-winning semi-autobiographical stand-up show The Other Guy for Stan, which earned him a 2017 AACTA Award for Best New Talent, comes to the Sydney Comedy Festival. Okine is an experienced hand with fresh and funny commentary on contemporary Australian life, including the challenges of being mistaken for those other brown guys - Waleed Aly and Nazeem Hussain.
