Zarna Garg

Last updated
Zarna Garg
NationalityIndian, American
Education University of Akron
Case Western Reserve University
Years active2018-present
SpouseShalabh Garg
Children3

Zarna Garg (born c. 1975) [1] is an Indian-American stand-up comedian and screenwriter. CNBC called her "the zany, outspoken voice of the Indian American woman." [2]

Contents

Early life, family and education

Zarna was born in India. She lived in Mumbai as a teenager. Her mother died of jaundice when Zarna was fourteen. [3] Her father demanded that Zarna get married the day after the death. Rather than have an arranged marriage, Zarna moved out of the house and stayed with friends and family.

Eventually, she immigrated to the US, relocating to live with her sister in Akron, Ohio. [2] [4]

She earned a bachelor's degree in finance from the University of Akron, and a Juris Doctor degree from the Case Western Reserve University School of Law. [5] After being a stay-at-home mother for 16 years, she was encouraged by her children to try stand-up comedy. [6]

Career

Zarna first performed at an open mic in New York City in 2018, [4] and her first official standup show was in February 2019 at Carolines on Broadway in New York City. [3] Her debut romantic comedy screenplay Rearranged won the Best Comedy Screenplay Award at the 2019 Austin Film Festival, and was also a 2019 Academy Nicholl Fellowships Semi-Finalist. [7]

In 2021, Zarna won Kevin Hart's comedy competition on Peacock, Lyft Comics. [8] She also won the Ladies of Laughter Award in the Newcomer Winner category. [9] In 2022 she was highlighted as "one of the gutsiest women comedians in America" in Gutsy on Apple TV, hosted by Hillary Clinton and Chelsea Clinton. [10] [11] She appeared on Tamron Hall , [12] Today , [13] and This American Life [14] to discuss how her daughter Zoya inspired her to start her stand up comedy career. She then made a second appearance on This American Life appearance with her husband, Shalabh. In 2023, Zarna hosted the National Women's History Museum's Women Making History Awards. [15]

Her first comedy special, Zarna Garg: One in a Billion, was released on Prime Video on May 16, 2023. It was filmed in September 2022 at Gramercy Theatre in New York City. [11] "Quick set-ups, rapid-fire punchlines ... Zarna has the kind of presence that powers network sitcoms." - Jason Zinoman, The New York Times. [16]

Zarna has produced and published her family podcast, The Zarna Garg Show, which airs on all major podcast platforms including YouTube, Spotify, and Apple.

She is starring in "A Nice Indian Boy" as the mother of the Gavaskar family. The film is premiering on SXSW. [17]

Zarna made her late night debut on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in January 2024, where she performed her new set at their New York City set.

She is currently opening for Tina Fey and Amy Poehler's tour and touring her next stand-up hour, "Practical People Win," in the US and internationally. She is also touring her hit podcast "The Zarna Garg Show".

Personal life

In 1998 Zarna married Shalabh Garg in the USA. They met on an online platform. They have three children together and live in New York City. [18]

Filmography

YearTitleRoleNotes
2023Zarna Garg: One in a Billion AmazonSelfAlso writer
2023The Zarna Garg Show: Family PodcastSelfProducer
2024The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy FallonSelfGuest
2024A Nice Indian BoySelfActress

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paula Poundstone</span> American stand-up comedian

Paula Poundstone is an American stand-up comedian, author, actress, interviewer, and commentator. Beginning in the late 1980s, she performed a series of one-hour HBO comedy specials. She provided backstage commentary during the 1992 presidential election on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. She is the host of the podcast Nobody Listens to Paula Poundstone, which is the successor to the National Public Radio program Live from the Poundstone Institute. She is a frequent panelist on NPR's weekly news quiz show Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me, and was a recurring guest on the network's A Prairie Home Companion variety program during Garrison Keillor's years as host.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moms Mabley</span> American comedian and actress (1897–1975)

Loretta Mary Aiken, known by her stage name Jackie "Moms" Mabley, was an American stand-up comedian and actress. Mabley began her career on the theater stage in the 1920s and became a veteran entertainer of the Chitlin' Circuit of black vaudeville. Mabley later recorded comedy albums and appeared in films and on television programs including The Ed Sullivan Show and The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maria Bamford</span> American stand-up comedian and actress

Maria Bamford is an American actress and stand-up comedian. Her work often uses self-deprecating and dark topics, including her dysfunctional family, depression, anxiety, suicide, and mental illness.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elayne Boosler</span> American comedian

Elayne Boosler is an American comedian, writer, and actress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Josh Blue</span> American comedian

Josh Blue is an American comedian. He was voted the Last Comic Standing on NBC's reality show Last Comic Standing during its fourth season, which aired May–August 2006. Blue has cerebral palsy, and much of his self-deprecating humor is centered on this.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christina Pazsitzky</span> Canadian-American comedian (born 1976)

Christina Pazsitzky, known by her stage name Christina P, is a Canadian-born American stand-up comedian, podcaster, writer, host and TV personality. Pazsitzky co-hosts the Your Mom's House podcast with her husband, comedian Tom Segura, and also hosts the Where My Moms At? podcast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jo Koy</span> American comedian (born 1971)

Joseph Glenn Herbert, known professionally as Jo Koy, is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He was a frequent panelist on E!'s late night show Chelsea Lately. He has since had a total of six comedy specials released by Comedy Central and Netflix. In 2024, Koy hosted the 81st Golden Globe Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iliza Shlesinger</span> American comedian and actress (born 1983)

Iliza Vie Shlesinger is an American stand-up comedian, actress and television host. She was the 2008 winner of NBC's Last Comic Standing and went on to host the syndicated dating show Excused from 2011 to 2013. She has hosted the TBS game show Separation Anxiety.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whitney Cummings</span> American actress, comedian and writer (born 1982)

Whitney Cummings is an American stand-up comedian, actress, writer, producer, director, and podcaster.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tig Notaro</span> American podcaster and comedian (born 1971)

Mathilde O'Callaghan "Tig" Notaro is an American stand-up comedian, writer, radio contributor, and actress known for her deadpan comedy. Her acclaimed album Live was nominated in 2014 for the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards. The special Tig Notaro: Boyish Girl Interrupted was nominated in 2016 at the 68th Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special. In 2017, the album Boyish Girl Interrupted was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nikki Glaser</span> American comedian (born 1984)

Nikki Glaser is an American stand-up comedian, actress, podcaster, radio host, and television host. She hosted the television series Not Safe with Nikki Glaser, which premiered on Comedy Central and Much on February 9, 2016. She is the star of the 2022 reality show Welcome Home Nikki Glaser? on E!. She hosted the Reality TV dating shows Blind Date (2019) on Bravo and FBoy Island (2021–) on HBO Max & The CW and its spinoff Lovers and Liars on The CW. She was announced as the host of the 2025 Golden Globes on August 28, 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Segura</span> American comedian (born 1979)

Thomas Weston Segura is an American stand-up comedian, writer, author, actor, and podcaster. Segura co-hosts the Your Mom's House podcast with his wife, fellow comedian Christina Pazsitzky. Segura also co-hosts the podcast Two Bears One Cave with friend and fellow comedian Bert Kreischer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hasan Minhaj</span> American comedian and actor (born 1985)

Hasan Minhaj is an American comedian, writer, producer, actor, and television host. Much of his comedy involves Indian culture and the modern American political landscape through the use of satire, observational comedy and dark comedy. His Netflix series Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj won an Emmy Award, a Peabody Award, and two Webby Awards. In 2019, he was listed in Time's annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cameron Esposito</span> American actress and comedian

Cameron Anne Young Anastasia Esposito is an American actress, comedian, and podcaster known for her show Take My Wife, as well as her stand-up comedy and her podcast, Queery. Esposito substantially focuses on topics surrounding the LGBTQ+ community, feminism, social justice, and the challenges faced by members of marginalized communities. Originally from Western Springs, Illinois, Esposito lives in Los Angeles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beth Stelling</span> American comedian and comedy writer

Beth Stelling is an American stand-up comedian and writer. She has performed in the Netflix series The Standups and served as a writer for the HBO television series Crashing. Stelling has released two comedy albums, Sweet Beth and Simply the Beth, and two comedy specials, Girl Daddy and If You Didn't Want Me Then.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taylor Tomlinson</span> American stand-up comedian (born 1993)

Taylor Elyse Tomlinson is an American stand-up comedian, writer, and television host. She has released three Netflix stand-up specials: Quarter-Life Crisis (2020), Look At You (2022) and Have It All (2024). She is the host of the CBS late-night show After Midnight, which premiered on January 17, 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helen Hong</span> American comedian, actress, producer and director

Helen Hong is an American stand-up comedian, actress, director, and producer. She has appeared in such works as Jane the Virgin, Parks and Recreation, and the Coen Brothers' Inside Llewyn Davis. She has a regular spot on NPR's Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! and hosts a trivia podcast called Go Fact Yourself. She formerly hosted the podcast Little Ethnic Girls. She has a recurring role on Nickelodeon's The Thundermans and had a recurring role as Mrs. Song in Starz's Blunt Talk. Hong is known for her comedic NowThis videos.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dana Goldberg (comedian)</span> American comedian (born 1976)

Dana Goldberg is an American comedian. She is especially known in the gay community, as Goldberg herself is gay. She is a weekly guest on The Stephanie Miller Show on SiriusXM and hosts her own podcast, Out in Left Field With Dana Goldberg on Advocate.com. She hosts an annual show in Albuquerque, New Mexico. In 2013, she was named a finalist in the Advocate's Stand Out: The National Queer Comedy Search. In 2017, she hosted the Los Angeles Resist March. Also in 2017, she performed at Trevor Live in New York City on a bill featuring John Oliver and Imagine Dragons. In 2019, she spoke at Lambda Legal's annual National Liberty Awards. In television, Goldberg has appeared on LOGO with her comedy special One Night Stand Up: Episode 4, filmed at San Francisco's Great American Music Hall.

<i>Cum Town</i> American comedy podcast (2016–2022)

Cum Town was a comedy podcast that was hosted by New York City-based comedians Nick Mullen, Stavros Halkias, and Adam Friedland, and produced between 2016 and 2022. During its run, it was consistently one of the most popular podcasts on Patreon and concluded as one of the top 25 comedy podcasts on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. In July 2022, it was succeeded by Mullen and Friedland's spin-off podcast and interview show The Adam Friedland Show.

Robin Tran is an American stand-up comedian, writer, actress, and producer. She is known for her stand-up comedy routines and roasts.

References

  1. ↑ Kokra, Sonali (October 9, 2023). "Meet Zarna Garg: The Indian mother whose comedy is taking the US by storm". The National.
  2. 1 2 "Zarna Garg: the zany, outspoken voice of the Indian-American woman". cnbctv18.com. 18 January 2020. Retrieved 2021-06-01.
  3. 1 2 Dutt, Ela (6 October 2020). "She calls herself 'The Funny Brown Mom': comedian Zarna Garg". News India Times. Retrieved 2023-03-18.
  4. 1 2 Kelsch, Carl (12 May 2023). "Zarna Garg's New Stand-Up Special Is a Family Affair". Harpers Bazaar . Retrieved 17 May 2023.
  5. ↑ Biswas, Swarnendu (29 March 2022). "All About Zarna Garg". Seema.com. Retrieved 17 May 2023.
  6. ↑ McCarthy, Sean (16 May 2023). "'Zarna Garg: One In A Billion' On Prime Video, An Indian Immigrant Mom Releases Her Debut Comedy Special". Decider.com. Retrieved 17 May 2023.
  7. ↑ Ramos, Dino-Ray (2020-02-18). "Sanjay Sharma's Marginal Mediaworks Sets South Asian Rom-Com 'Rearranged' From Zarna Garg". Deadline. Retrieved 2020-12-16.
  8. ↑ Which Comedian Will Win This Head-to-Head Undercover Challenge? | LYFT COMICS (Eps. 1) , retrieved 2021-12-19
  9. ↑ "Ladies of Laughter®". Ladies of Laughter®. Retrieved 2023-03-18.
  10. ↑ "'Gutsy' Apple TV Plus Review: Stream It Or Skip It?" . Retrieved 2022-09-13.
  11. 1 2 Patten, Dominic (6 April 2023). "Zarna Garg Lands First Comedy Special, Gets May Premiere Date On Prime Video". Deadline. Retrieved 17 May 2023.
  12. ↑ Comedian Zarna Garg Went From Being a Stay-At-Home Mom to a Social Media Star , retrieved 2022-09-21
  13. ↑ "Episode dated 7 January 2023", IMDb, retrieved 2023-01-24
  14. ↑ "Comedy Duo". This American Life. 2022-09-17. Retrieved 2022-09-21.
  15. ↑ "Zarna Garg". National Women's History Museum. Retrieved 2023-03-18.
  16. ↑ Five Stand-Up Specials for the Long Holiday Weekend
  17. ↑ South by Southwest
  18. ↑ Mauch, Ally (November 11, 2021). "Comedian Zarna Garg Jokes About 'Trashing' Her Family: 'It Comes Easily to Me'". People. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.