Winning over the audience
Humility is just as important as having crafty punchlines, says comedian andrew netto.
WHEREVER Klang Valley-based comedian Andrew Netto performs, he has one mission: to find and break the “hantu” (ghost). But no, there’s nothing supernatural in his act.
“It’s a comedy saying. You may have an audience of 150 people. And there’s always one person, one uncle, who doesn’t want to be there. Sitting there, staring you at the face. The ‘hantu’ becomes your number one priority. You must break his curse, you must make uncle laugh,” says Netto, 33, in a recent interview in Petaling Jaya.
“You see that uncle crack a smile, and that’s it – you know the show is going well. Some people can shut out that one person and focus on the other 150 people. Me, I shut out the other people and focus on him!”
This tactic seems to be working well for Netto, who has been making people laugh since 2006. The funnyman has performed all over Malaysia, as well as Singapore, Brunei, India and Australia. His big break came when he was invited to be the opening act for comedian Harith Iskander in his show Man On Stage Telling Funny Stories Part 1.
Netto has also opened for international stand-up comedians such as Ahmed Ahmed and Maz Jobrani. In 2012, he opened for his hero, Canadian comedian Russell Peters to an 8,000 strong crowd in Kuala Lumpur.
“My first exposure to stand-up comedy came from my dad. When I was 18, someone burned him a Russell Peters CD, and he showed it to me. He said, ‘Andrew, there’s some profanity in this, but you should watch it’,” recalls Netto, stating his dream comedian to collaborate with is Dave Chappelle.
Netto was supposed to have a headlining KL show series in late March. However, it had to be called off due to the Covid-19 pandemic. During this downtime, he has been involved in a handful of low-key online comedy shows.
“It’s strange (these online shows) because you can’t hear the audience laughing,” he says.
Even when the movement control order (MCO) is lifted, Netto doesn’t think shows will go back to normal until the end of 2020. For now, he is focusing on his day job in the business development department of event company Livescape Group.
As for the comedy stage, he remains realistic but has big dreams for next year.
“Next year is my 15th year in comedy, and I am looking to doing a multi-city tour in Asia. I am looking at shows in Penang, KL, Kuching, Kota Kinabalu, Johor, Singapore, Jakarta, Manila, and Bangkok to start. I am excited, it’s something I have wanted to do for a while,” he says.
In person, the tall comedian first appears slightly imposing. Sit down with him for just a few minutes, however, and Netto reveals himself to be very chatty and sociable.
It may sound hard to believe, but he wasn’t always such a livewire. In fact, when he was young, he was very quiet and well-behaved.
At one point, his parents thought he would become a priest. All that changed at age 13, when Netto came out of his shell, and became a class clown. What happened?
“Girls,” says Netto with a laugh. “I met girls!”
Comedy runs in Netto’s family. His cousin Kavin Jayaram is also a well-known comedian. Indeed, Netto’s debut stand-up performance was in a show organised by Kavin.
Comedy can be a competitive business, and Netto says there used to be tension between him and Kavin when they were starting out. Thankfully, those days are over.
“We had rivalry throughout the years. There were patches where we would only talk when we really needed to. But after a while, I think we just grew out of it. It’s family first. Today, we still do shows together,” says Netto.
“And when he got his Netflix show, I was so proud. I couldn’t be happier for him.”
Family is very important for this comedian. Netto thinks the world of his father, mother and elder sister. Many answers in his interview had some reference to them.
“My family makes me laugh. They’re the most important thing in my life, more than money or anything. They’ve stood by me through hell and back,” he shares.
Netto draws most of his material from news headlines and current events. He reads about five newspapers a day.
One of the most important things in his comedy, he notes, is audience interaction. Netto says some comedy acts can feel very scripted, and that is something you want to avoid. What is important is making the audience feel they are completely connected to you.
Another trait that is important for comedians to have is humility.
“Some comics (let) the fame get to them, and they forget themselves. They don’t even want to take photos with people after their shows. Not me, I love taking a million pictures with people. Many comics just lack in humility, which is something they should have,” concludes Netto.