British ventriloquist and comedian Nina Conti to perform this weekend in Mumbai

Roughly 20 years ago British ventriloquist and comedian Nina Conti performed a minor surgery on a muppet monkey a quiet resident of her closet Egged on by her ldquoradicalrdquo director mentor and friend Ken Campbell Conti was still trying to find her voice without moving her lips One night while practising with a host of ldquohorriblerdquo puppets she remembered the beadyeyed monkey ldquoI wondered if his mouth would move I pulled out the stuffing from his head shoved my hand right up to his mouth and it moved a tiny millimetrerdquo she explains animatedly illustrating the muppetrsquos lip movement with her fingers When he looked at her she felt ldquoAh he knows me and hersquos got a lot to sayrdquoPicShadab KhanThe Monkey of course never shut up sparing none with his acerbic humour This weekend the ventriloquist is bringing the Monkey out of the bag along with her arsenal of masks at a show hosted by G5A Foundation for Contemporary Culture It is part of their collaboration with Londonrsquos Soho Theatre to introduce the latterrsquos vibrant comedy culture to Mumbai Like a good joke Anuradha Parikh founder and artistic director G5A remarks that the timing is just right While comedy has taken off in India itrsquos rare to find a support system that encourages consistency ldquoEverytime we spoke to Soho Theatre about working together we discussed comedy Comedy enables us to talk about things that we wouldnrsquot otherwise be able to After featuring cinema theatre movement and music it felt right to open the space up for comedy and have conversations that matter Later we hope to develop a comedy labrdquo she shares Pointing to how Conti and the Monkey encourage the idea of listening she adds ldquoIf we all listened a little more it would create a better worldrdquoListen we did to Conti who is on her first visit to IndiaEdited excerpts from an interviewYoursquove been in showbiz all your life Tell us briefly how you journeyed from being an actor to a ventriloquist and comedianMy father Tom Conti and mother Kara Wilson were both successful actors I used to visit my father on the sets so I knew I wanted to do something in this field but didnrsquot want to get lost in his footsteps I had an uncomfortable start I performed with the Royal Shakespeare Company too and shouldrsquove loved it but I felt impatient I looked very nice in my dress and everything but my soul was screaming And then I met Ken It was his mission to champion unsung heroes who were authentic and ruffle up people who were not I hated ventriloquism it was always some guy doing cheesy jokes with a horrifying puppet I didnrsquot want to do that but Ken encouraged me and said lsquoIf yoursquore a clown that doesnrsquot want to wear the nose yourself this is perfect for yoursquorsquoConti with one of her masks Pic CourtesyInstagramThe monkey has been your companion for 20 years Whatrsquos your relationship with him Have you ever wondered what it would be like to try standup without himGrowing up in the rsquo90s as a woman in the UK was okay not dreadful But you had to be a certain way You wanted to seem happy with everything and be wellbehaved If yoursquore told that all the time while growing up this other voice starts to grow secretly like a shadow And if yoursquove got a puppet this shadow slips right in and can suddenly be the voice of all those thoughts So for me it was like phew freedom mdash the liberation to voice all these uncensored thoughts in a way that felt safe It was also exciting to not be in a monologue because I donrsquot always know what I think about everything With theMonkey it could be more of a conversationI havenrsquot tried standup comedy without him For me it would always feel like a subtraction I guess before I was just worried about being judged but now I donrsquot mind seeing how it would feel to be just aloneWhat can we expect from your showItrsquos nice to come here with Soho Theatre because itrsquos an exciting place thatrsquos constantly encouraging new voices At the show there will be the Monkey and the masks but wersquoll see what happens when we do it laughs You know the hot or cold game Thatrsquos my policy People like one thing I go towards it So the audience creates the show Irsquom just there to listen facilitate and narrate whatrsquos in the roomContirsquos tips for amateur ventriloquistsgtgt Gauge what the puppet has to say donrsquot come with your ideasgtgt Donrsquot try to work out what the world wants to heargtgt Therersquos something about puppetry and performing in the moment without a plan that is honest and excitingOn May 28 and 29 8 pmAt G5A Warehouse Laxmi Mills Estate Shakti Mills Lane Mahalaxmi WestLog on to g5afoundationorgCost Rs 500