When Nimesh Patel washed out of medical school, it wasn’t the end of the world, but he was crushed. All his life people had been awed by how smart he was, so when he switched to the finance department, he still expected to fly high.
Alas, he graduated into the Great Recession of 2008, and while his grades generated only the sound of crickets from recruiters, it was an economic theory that led to his fortune in comedy.
In language that betrayed the finance major within, Patel explained, “It’s always been the case, at least that I can remember, that comedy is the least capital-intensive way to pursue artistic expression in the sense that you just need a stage, and you need a microphone, and you need some time to write some jokes.
“Outside of that, all the other means of production are literally in the palm of your hand. If you’re good and you can adapt to technology. The barrier to entry is very low.”
Also, he said, it sounded like fun. “I just don’t have a lot of skills outside of being able to talk,” he said. “I write pretty well, and I like making people laugh. So I went on stage in August of 2009 and caught the bug, and here we are.”
Patel understates his writing talent, which he commands with a relentless work ethic. He scored his first writing job when Chris Rock tapped him for the 2016 Academy Awards. He’s since written for “Saturday Night Live” and “The White House Correspondents’ Dinner.” He’s also created dozens of videos and three full-length specials in just the past two years.
In the process, he’s attracted a following that prompted Variety and New York Magazine’s “Vulture” to name him among their top comedians to watch in 2023.
Asked what made him think he could be a comedian, he answered without skipping a beat, “Arrogance.” Then he laughed, but he’s not kidding. His swagger fills the stage. At 6-foot-2, he’s smart, quick and articulate. His sets sound like he’s just opened a vein of jokes, flowing into each other through next-level insights, and punctuated with street patois and what can only be called “giggles.”
“It’s just the arrogance of ignorance,” he said. “I had no idea what I was up against when I thought I would venture into this world. I grew up being told I was smart and believing that I could figure things out.”
Of the new material he’s bringing to his “Fast and Loose” tour, Patel said it’s more personal, but also reflects his awareness of what’s going on in the world.
“The world is requiring people to provide something to laugh at,” he said, “because reality right now is kind of bleak. And that’s coming from someone who’s an optimist. That’s half the reason I’m a comedian is I try to find the funny in everything.”
His “Fast and Loose” set comes on the heels of his 45-minute YouTube special about his bout with testicular cancer, “Lucky Lefty: Or How I Lost My Right Nut And All I Got Was This Stupid Special.” In seven months, it’s racked up more than half a million views.
“With ‘Lucky Lefty,’ the actual set, or the bones of it, were put together in five days,” Patel said, “because it was just me recapping the story of what happened, from diagnosis to post-surgery. Then it became hyper-iterative, looking for new jokes, new beats, new angles of attack.
“That was, I don’t want to say a labor of love, it was more just a labor of necessity. I had nothing else to talk about at the time. And it felt like, OK, if this was given to me, the cancer, then it was given to me for a reason. Let me see if I can’t make a 45-minute bit and how many jokes I can mine and pull.”
That he feels it was “given to him” reflects the Hindu faith he says he believes but doesn’t practice. “My grandpa was a Hindu priest,” he said, and it’s hard to shake those influences.” He added that he’s hoping to earn some karma points with his new set.
Patel is looking forward to returning to Tucson. “I was very startled by the diversity in the crowd,” he said. “Everybody comes out, every race, every age group, every walk of life from doctors to people who don’t have jobs, you know? It’s not for 12-year-olds for sure, but I’ve seen parents there with their kids. And I’ve had people bring their parents to their first comedy show. There’s stuff for everybody.
“It’s really cool to see it, and it really makes me happy that something that I’ve done resonates with people.”
A meet and greet will follow the show.
Nimesh Patel: “Fast and Loose,” Fox Tucson Theatre, 17 W. Congress Street, Tucson, $40, 7:30 p.m. Friday, Jan 12, www.foxtucson.com
More comedy this week
Green Valley Recreation West Social Center auditorium, 1111 S. GVR Drive, Green Valley, 6 to 9 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 9, dinner and show, $40 includes dinner, Jason Love Comedy Night, with Rocky Whatule, Carlos Oscar and Eric O’Shea, Princess Cruise Lines Entertainer of the Year
Hotel Congress, 311 E. Congress Street, Tucson, www.hotelcongress.com, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 10, $15, Lady Ha Ha Comedy presents “Period Power: A Comedy Show About Periods and Beyond,” benefitting period.org, which distributes menstrual products to people in need.
Laff’s Comedy Caffe, 2900 E. Broadway Boulevard, Tucson, laffstucson.com, 8 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 5, and 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 6, $15, $20 preferred seating; musical comedy veteran Ron Feingold
Tucson Improv Movement/TIM Comedy Theatre, 414 E. Ninth Street, Tucson, tucsonimprov.com, $7 each show, $10 for both shows, same night, free jam; 6:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 5, Improv Jam; 7:30 p.m. “The Soapbox;” 9 p.m. Standup Comedy; 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 6, ‘Pretendy Time” for kids; 7:30 p.m. “Laughing Liberally,” 9 p.m. “4th Ave. Confessions”
Unscrewed Theater, 4500 E. Speedway Boulevard, Tucson, unscrewedtheatre.org, $8, live or remote, $5 kids, 7:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 5, From the Top musical improv; 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 6, Not Burnt Out Just Unscrewed; 9 p.m. “The Backyard Improv Playground.”
