Neel Kolhatkar

Comedian, YouTuber, actor.

Neel Kolhatkar is one of the most exciting voices in modern comedy. In 2009, at just 15, he started what would go on to be a tremendous career, his shows enjoying critical acclaim and launching him into work in TV and film. Today, his YouTube channel boasts over 600,000 subscribers, and he continues to perform stand-up worldwide.

So why did we invite him on?

Neel has long been an outspoken figure, critical of what he perceives to be the tightening restrictions on comedy and the suffocating influence of woke culture. For example, in 2019, he created the eight-part YouTube series Crossing The Line, “investigating perspectives on offensive comedy”. We wanted to hear what he had to say about modern comedy, the scene in Australia, and whether the tide looked like it was turning.

What did we talk about?

Looking back, it’s clear that Neel was quick to see society's unfortunate path. In 2015, he wrote, directed and starred in the short film ‘Modern Educayshun’, a scathing, farcical satire of the Western school system’s incoming wokeifying. Watching it now, it feels like it could have been made last week - by a documentarian. The message resonated, having been viewed over 20 million times in the decade since its release. How did he see what was coming? How does it feel now that it’s here?