Sami Shah’s an immigrant from Karachi, Pakistan. Early in I, Migrant & Other Stories we learned that Karachi’s population exceeds the entire population of Australia. Last year he moved to Melbourne after three years labouring in a rural Western Australian town – a mandate imposed by Australian immigration authorities. Back in Pakistan he was a journalist, but he’d become so acquainted with the violent horrors of Karachi that he couldn’t stay any longer – especially considering he has an infant daughter.
It’s an intriguing biography, no doubt, immediately distinguishing Shah from many of his contemporaries. Though, I, Migrant wasn’t simply an exercise in prosaic recount. The show hinged on unexpected outbreaks, some serving to break down reflexive stereotyping, others maniacal tangents that saw everyone engrossed by Shah’s personable but by no means cloying delivery.
For instance, here was a Pakistani man not only performing stand-up comedy, but speaking of promiscuity (the show contained at least a dozen come references) and making jokes about the origins of Eid. In underlining how many Australians assume there’s no such thing as stand-up comedy in Pakistan (or Asia more generally), Shah pithily related what a ridiculous conceit it is to presume laughter is a Western construct.
Shah was blatantly liberal-minded, and an atheist. The response to this admission was enough to illuminate the one-track opinion the Australian public has of people living in Muslim countries. It was no surprise to hear an immigrant from a third world country speak grimly about Australia’s racial tolerance. In Shah’s experience, Australia is a place where racism is rampant and pigeonholing happens without a second thought. However, once again, he reminded us that racism isn’t an exclusively Western thing. It’s just perpetrated in a more destructive manner in the West.
The statements alluding to Australia’s inherent racism could easily prompt a proud Melburnian to shake their head. But then, isn’t that just a typical response – buffering accusations of racism with flat denial. Our system is flawed, and our recent governments proud of (and popular for) their hyper-protective immigration policies. But the public discourse on this issue is still embarrassingly frigid.
Shah also spent a lot of time reflecting on loving, romantic relationships – specifically spotlighting the flawed expectation that loving relationships will secure happiness. His conclusions weren’t intended to be definitive, but he did suggest loneliness is a more natural emotional state than happiness.
As you can gather, I, Migrant wasn’t one hour of floor slamming dick jokes. It has to be stressed though: Sami Shah’s an extremely sharp comedian, and he successfully honoured the show’s founding motive to convey the buoyant necessity of laughter.
BY AUGUSTUS WELBY
