The Bright Side

This is a great moment for fans of Monty Python—and, indeed, anyone with a sense of humour. Acquiring the rights to almost all of the great comedy troupe’s work, Netflix last month made all-but the troupe’s last film, The Meaning of Life, available for streaming for the first time. That means you can discover, or rediscover, their feature classics The Holy Grail and The Life of Brian, as well as classic bits from Monty Python’s Flying Circus, such as the Dead Parrot Sketch and The Ministry of Silly Walks.

The word ‘pythonesque’ entered the Oxford English Dictionary in 1989 to describe the troupe’s surrealist, farcical comedic style. But their inimitable work remains fiercely resonant. (One can see in the crucifixion of Brian the Great the obsession of own times with heroes and messiahs, for instance).

Combining bizarre situations and people, irreverent satire, surrealist segues and an inordinate love for the English language and its idiosyncrasies, Monty Python’s inimitable style has endeared them to generations after generations. Their shadow can be seen everywhere, but their body of work has never quite been replicated. Their presence can even be felt in some of the absurdist beats of our own homegrown All India Bakchod and The Viral Fever. Even Margaret Thatcher revelled in the famous words, “This is an ex-parrot!” when lampooning the Liberal Democrats’ symbol at the Conservative Party Conference.

On Indian television some of the smartest, funniest and, yes, most pythonesque comic writing appeared in the early nineties. Jaspal Bhatti’s Flop Show, which tackled the absurdities of life in India, was clearly influenced by the writing of the Pythons—though it had a distinct flavour of its own. Only 10 episodes were ever produced, but they remain well-loved and cherished. Perhaps in time, classics like Flop Show will revitalise sketch comedy here, inspiring a new generation of writers and actors to bring original, absurd humour back to the small screen. Until then, we can but gather up our shrubberies, bandage our flesh wounds, and heed the closing words of Pythons’ song: Life’s a laugh and death’s a joke, it’s true/ You’ll see it’s all a show/ Keep ‘em laughing as you go/ Just remember that the last laugh is on you/ And always look on the bright side of life!

MONTY PYTHON’S INIMITABLE STYLE COMBINES BIZARRE SITUATIONS WITH SATIRE