Taking offence should be celebrated as a National Festival: Anu Menon

People take offence at everything these days. And many women comedians tend to take everything seriously, that's a pan-world scenario, says Anu Menon. She adds, "As a defence, I would say women stand- up comedians get fewer chances compared to their male counterparts. Besides, there is a huge pressure on women comedians as to what to wear, what jokes to share, and how to behave, for people think that being a woman she can have people distracted. So when women stand up comedians are trolled many take it personally. It is disheartening but then taking criticism is an art that we all need to learn." 

Almost a decade back Anu (Anuradha) Menon had people in splits when she played Lola Kutty on Television. She is still at it, having people in splits I mean, just that she has switched from being a VJ to being a stand-up comedian. " From being the heavily-accented Malayali on TV to being anything from Punjabi, Sindhi, or Tamilian on stage, I have always loved playing with different accents," says the ever gorgeous Menon who rarely left the skin of Lola Kutty when she played the role. " I played Lola Kutty for seven long years and the initial two years I was glued to my TV avtaar wherever I went. In fact, when people learned that I don't look like Lola, they were disappointed," she said speaking to Catchnews during her visit to Jaipur to attend the Woman Up! Summit organised by Siyahi.

Recollecting two memories from the past she said, "I happened to meet almost every celebrity when I was playing Lola Kutty. It was fun. The two strong memories I have of that time are, one that I can never forget how chivalrous Bollywood actor Shahrukh Khan is. He is a thorough gentleman who knows how to treat women with respect, who never shys away from apologising when he has kept someone waiting, even if it is for a few minutes. Also, he never forgets to compliment people. The other incident I remember is when A.R.Rahman kept me waiting for nine hours and I had to go to a close by mall wearing the Lola Kutty avtaar."

Talking about men at workplace hitting on women she says, " That way I am lucky because I apparently scare people. I remember once someone at work said, you are the thinnest Malayali I have ever known."