Her typical day starts as early as 4:00 AM, when she gets ready and rushes to the local train to sell artificial jewelry to the passengers on board, till 6:30 AM. She then travels to Malad and spends her day cooking for five homes and gets free only by 4:00 PM. Her everyday ordeal looks like any usual day in a maid’s life, doing the daily chores, selling stuff in trains, cooking and then returning home late in the evening, but wait a minute, this woman does much more than that. Meet Deepika Mhatre, a maid, who is now also a successful stand-up comedian. Yes you read it right, Deepika is a stand-up comedian and has performed at various shows and her videos are also very popular.
Family Life
She has a knack for humor and despite the struggles of life, this woman looks at the brighter side and ends up cracking jokes whenever the opportunity arises. Upon asking about her family, she says she has 3 daughters and 1 husband. You cannot miss the pun in her statements. Even when she begins her act during shows, her opening statement itself does the magic
“I have seen stand up comedians often sharing stories about their maids, but now, I will speak.”
Deriving her humor from real life instances her comedy is effortless and natural. Her punch lines are like little bombs of truth and the audience never stops applauding. She sets the tone right from the first minute of her performance and is able to retain audience interest for a long time.
Her Journey
It is a fact that today Deepika performs quite often, but it is also a fact that she hasn’t forgotten her roots and where she started. She still cooks and sells jewelry and whenever she gets a gig, she performs after finishing her work.
Speaking about her transition Deepika said, “This started when Sangeeta madam (Sangeeta Das, at whose home Deepika works) arranged a talent show for us “bai log.” No one usually does that, right? But she gave us a platform to showcase our talents—just as a fun activity. That’s where I decided to take my jokes to the stage.”
Discovering Her Talent
During her first show itself, Rachel Lopez, who works with the Hindustan Times and after witnessing her performance, spotted her; Rachel knew Deepika had a good future in comedy. Rachel then got in touch with Aditi Mittal, an established name in the world of stand up comedy. Aditi also almost immediately recognized Deepika’s talent. Aditi then mentored and guided Deepika, preparing her for a professional stage. Deepika attended many shows where Aditi performed learning the tricks of the trade and gradually, they shot an episode of ‘Bad Girl’ together.”
Her Content Ideas
We have seen a lot of stand up comedians making fun of their workplace especially the ones who work in a corporate culture. Deepika’s comedy is not very different from them, she also voices out the feelings, daily instances and the humorous side of her work culture and doesn’t sound like a complaint even once.
Deepika has recently launched a Diwali special video which is receiving rave reviews from the audience.
The Bitter Sweet Life
Though Deepika makes people laugh and relieve their stress, the bitter truth is that her personal life isn’t very stress-free. She has to shoulder the responsibility of the entire house as her husband suffers from Asthma and doesn’t keep too well. She herself suffers from high blood sugar and has now deliberately reduced her cooking and other work due to health issues.
She enjoys spreading smiles and looks forward to more gigs so that she can meet the financial needs of her family and sustain well. We find her journey commendable and inspiring for every human being. She is a live example who proves that no work is small and if you have talent, you can achieve big in life with consistent hard work, faith, and passion.
