Roll into your 30s laughing with comedian Olga Koch as she performs in Mumbai

Remember that precise moment when you woke up and discovered that from now dates need to mean more a job is necessary and that you need to count your beers to avoid a hangover For this writer like many it arrived when he turned 30 So when Olga Koch speaks about the said panic we can only nod in agreementThe comedian is in town to perform the premiere of her set Prawn Cocktail tonight and tomorrow at a venue in Khar This is Kochrsquos second tour of India after she spent 10 days in the city touring in April last year This time though the 31year old returns armed with personal experiences after turning 30 in SeptemberldquoI really did not intend to write a show so soon But thatrsquos how the best ones happenrdquo the RussianBritish comic said The inspiration arrived when she visited a wedding in New Zealand met someone and then decided to make a trip to Japan on a whim last year ldquoWe all have had that moment of panic on turning 30 or the feeling that a stranger from across the room is the loveofmyliferdquo she laughs The show encapsulates the sometimes crazy emotional and personal moments of her journeyKoch performs at Edinburgh in 2022 Pic CourtesyKat GollockWhy is it that we all dread the milestone She has a theory too ldquoYou are older at 28 than at 30 At 28 you are so filled with panic for your life ahead We all think that somehow we will turn into this responsible person when the clock strikes midnight but we are still the same dumbassesrdquo she remarks The title of the show comes from her first tattoo she got after going past the age last year ldquoThis is my first tattoo and I chose a prawn I was crying because I was so afraid of showing it to my mom who didnrsquot really carerdquo she laughsThese personal accidents she says often become universal experiences Do these experiences change her we ask ldquoIt is a lesson you learn in comedy In order to become good at standup comedy you have to be bad at it first We are so bad at being bad at things as adults unlike children As adults we are told to use buzz words look it up on Google pretend that we know what we are talking aboutrdquo she points outThat trick does not work on the stage ldquoWith comedy every new setup is a punch in the face I just finished a work in progress material before I left for India and I was constantly panicking about the reactionrdquo she reveals Quite like her first India tour last year that was preceded by hours of meetings to get things right ldquoI was sweating my clothes off and the Mumbai heat did not helprdquo she laughs Tell her that the weather is cooler this time round and she quips ldquoIt is not People keep saying that This is beach weatherrdquoThis time around Koch is performing in Mumbai and Bengaluru She has already been on a food binge across town ldquoOn Wednesday we did pani puri some Goan food and chai on the street I plan to visit Lingrsquos Pavilion for some IndoChinese cuisine and also a few Irani cafeacutesrdquo she adds But the true challenge is to find the best vada pav ldquoI have had three or four suggestions each of them people claim is the best I am going to taste all of them and make the decisionrdquo she laughs As for Bengaluru Koch plans to visit a theme park ldquoI am still trying to convince my team about thatrdquo Why a theme park we wonder ldquoWhy not How old can you be that you do not want to go on ridesrdquo she asks We shall plead the fifth on that oneOn Today 9 pm January 20 8 pmAt Above The HabitatMumbai 3rd Road Khar WestLog on to inbookmyshowcomCost Rs 499 onwardsAlso in townBritish presenter and comedian Jimmy Carr brings his deadpan delivery and sharp oneliners for the India debut of his tour Terribly FunnyOn January 20 930 pmAt Mahakavi Kalidas Natyamandir Purushottam Kheraj Road Mulund WestLog on to insiderinCost Rs 799