Sharlin Jahan

Written by: Si Hawkins
Published: Friday 21st April 2023

It was the first of times, it was the worst of times - and the sauciest. This week's guest is Sharlin Jahan, a stand-up/actor/improviser/writer who you can often hear "expressing myself (yelling) at people in bars, about the trials and tribulations of being a short, Bangladeshi, Canadian, female-type person in Britain."

We've gathered here today because one of her more enjoyable tribulations is hosting Brown Sauce, which happens at 2Northdown in London's Kings Cross this coming Monday. Headlined by Nish Kumar, it's a mixed bill for a good cause - the Turkey/Syria earthquake emergency fund - featuring "household names and the best up-and-coming talent, all hilarious comedians who happen to be brown," says Jahan, as she embarks on the night's surprisingly fantastical origin story.

"Brown Sauce came about mainly because I grew up in Canada's snowy, uninhabited hills, surrounded by nothing but Game of Thrones wildlings (I mean, even the bears are white). It didn't get much more colourful when I started doing comedy in the UK.

"I soon discovered that the UK comedy scene is paler than the original cast of Lord of the Rings - people of colour are more mythical than elves and orcs in Middle Earth, apparently - and realised that I'd have to make an effort to meet brown people, if only because they are the only ones equipped to survive the impending climate crisis.

"Thankfully Kemah Bob had already set up a very successful space called FOC It Up! and taking inspiration from it, I created Brown Sauce. It's entering its second year, and I love the night. I have loved having the opportunity to laugh, learn about my culture, and finally meet some goddamn brown people!"

More editions of Brown Sauce are planned for the near future - scroll down for the link. But now we look back at Jahan's own onstage origin tale.

First gig - and worst gig?

I started stand-up comedy in late 2018, and did a course which ended with a show at a West End comedy club. I was one of the best on the night and was like "Apollo, I am ready."

I deigned - deigned! - to do a second gig (I mean, why mess with perfection?). It was an open mic in Hammersmith to 10 other comedians, and I bombed so badly. It was the worst I'd ever been at anything in my life. I did so badly that I was determined to keep going until I was at LEAST mediocre. The dream still lives on...

Favourite show, ever?

BROWN SAUCE. OF COURSE. No other gigs exist for me.

My favourite moment so far has to be when we went to Edinburgh. We had six evenings of Brown Sauce in a row, and the line-ups were chef's kiss.

As a comedy act, I was excited to work with Atsuko Okatsuka, Sindhu Vee, Eshaan Akbar and more. As a promoter, I was pulling my hair out because selling shows in Edinburgh is a specific form of torture.

Which one person influenced your comedy life most significantly?

My mom or as I call her: ammu. She is unintentionally the funniest person I know. She, to this day, calls me her white son because, and I quote, I like 'going on walks'.

And who's the most disagreeable person you've come across in the business?

To my surprise, the industry is pretty reasonable! The only thing I can think of at the moment is there is this one promoter. I have met him three times, and he always forgets my name. He has never paid me, but I have a feeling that he's paid the male acts.

The last time I gigged with him, he brought me onto the stage after chanting 'Israel is great' for a few minutes, then introduced me as 'and now this Muslim lady'. Which was a weird thing to navigate, I'll be honest, but I had fun.

This happened a few years ago, and on that day, I finally found a gig I would not do. It's hard for a comedian to say no to a gig, especially when we are starting out. But that was the day that I finally had some standards. I am pretty proud of myself!

Is there one routine/gag you loved, that audiences inexplicably didn't?

I remember reading about this woman in the States who tried to flush her baby down the toilet at a McDonald's. I thought it was so crazy that I made a bit out of it. It worked a few times, but mostly people were horrified - which makes me feel good about society to be fair.

Our classic brown sauce - HP, Daddies, etc - is an acquired taste. Have you acquired it?

I have not acquired a taste for brown sauce. Frankly, I still don't know what it is. And refuse to learn! I named it Brown Sauce because that's what we used to call each other in my home town in Canada in the '90s (Ya, we were pretty cool and rad and so forth).

I realise now that that terminology has not translated across the pond. I have accidentally waded into a pretty serious debate on condiments and I'll be honest, I have regrets. My favourite condiment is actually Sriracha. So... comedy night name change is pending.

Any reviews, heckles or post-gig reactions stick in the mind?

The best heckle I ever got was after a woman in the front row told me that the person she was sitting next to was her cousin and also her aunt. She didn't explain further, to the point that, during the break, a couple of the audience members tried to figure out the puzzle. They had a notepad drawing and everything!

When they told me they figured it out, we had the cousins/aunts listen to various audience theories until we got to the bottom of it. That lives in my brain, rent-free. Forget ancestry.com; come to Brown Sauce. We will sort you out!

How do you feel about where your career is at, right now?

Regarding Brown Sauce, I am so excited about where we are going. This is our second year, and we have some of my heroes, like Nish Kumar and Mawaan Rizwan, headlining. And the audience is so superbly mixed because the comedy is for everyone! The best part is when the comedians make fun of each other. "Oh, that's your joke on your mother, well wait till you hear this...!"

It's honestly a blast and I don't think we have anything like it in London.