Seminar: An Indian made in Hong Kong: Comedy, Identity and Intercultural Imaginary

Join us for a hybrid seminar session in the Media@UniMelb Seminar Series, co-presented by the Media and Communications Studies Program, English and Theatre Studies Program, and Asian Culture Research Hub in the School of Culture and Communication, Faculty of Arts, University of Melbourne.

Being born-and-raised in Hong Kong as an Indian kid in a predominantly Chinese community, Vivek Mahbubani, a comedian that performs in both Cantonese and English, has had to face issues such as not fitting in, racial discrimination and being told that he’s “not Indian enough”. In this seminar, Vivek talks about how growing up and learning Cantonese was both his biggest challenge as well as best super-power he uses daily to both appreciate Hong Kong culture and make fun of it at the same time.

The talk will be followed with discussions by:

• Dr Sarah Balkin, English and Theatre Studies, University of Melbourne
• A/Prof Lisa Leung, Department of Cultural Studies, Lingnan University Hong Kong
• Dr Lynda Ng, English and Theatre Studies, University of Melbourne

Biography:

Vivek Mahbubani is best known as Hong Kong’s top English and Cantonese stand-up comedian. Being bi-lingual allows him to both laugh and get offended in multiple languages. Vivek performs all over Asia. His favour book is Sun Tzu’s Art of War, yet his more preferred color is, oddly, hot pink. Vivek is performing in this year’s Melbourne International Comedy Festival https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2024/shows/indian-comedian-cantonese-comedy.