Known as the ‘godfather of stand-up comedy in Malaysia,’ Harith Iskander is one of the most famous names in local popular culture. His fame has now become a global phenomenon, with his recent win in The Laugh Factory’s Funniest Person in the World competition, beating out comedians from over 50 other countries to take top spot. Sharuna Segaren sat down with him for a chat about his journey as a comedian and what’s coming up next.

Harith Iskander may seem an imposing figure, but in person, he is incredibly down-to-earth, friendly, and easy-going. Within minutes of conversing with him, his warm demeanour made it feel like we had already been acquainted before. It’s no wonder that the affable and funny gentleman has been making audiences of all ages laugh for the past 25 years and has a steady fan following on social media, with no signs of slowing down. With a loving family by his side, the 49-year-old Malaysian has increasingly grown his portfolio while staying true to his roots as a stand-up comedian.

Seizing an opportunity

If you were born in the ’70s or ’80s in Malaysia, there’s a good chance you are familiar with the Malaysian sketch comedy Jangan Ketawa (‘Don’t Laugh’). In the early ’90s, it was the highest-rated TV show in Malaysia. As one of the directors and actors of the show, Iskander has fond memories of the show and recalls them like it was just yesterday.

Although Harith was born in Johor Bahru to a Malay father and English mother, his family moved to Kuala Lumpur while he was at a young age, so he is a self proclaimed ‘KL Boy’.

He attributes his sense of humour to his late mum and her dry wit, and would often have his classmates in stitches while poking fun at them and telling jokes. Upon returning from obtaining a degree in film and TV productions from Curtin University in Perth, Australia, he began a career in advertising, but he was not entirely happy with what he was doing.

“I was in my mid-20s, producing and working on TV commercials at Leo Burnett. I was enjoying myself, but my heart wasn’t fully in it. I felt like I wanted to do something different.

Call it serendipity, as after watching the movie Dead Poets Society and being inspired by one of Robin Williams’ most famous quotes, which was about carpe diem and seizing the day, I decided to hand in my resignation. Not long after that, I got a call froma lady I had met on production previously, a freelance producer named Linda Chong.”

It turned out that Linda Chong was shooting a sketch comedy with 10 of her friends and wanted Harith to come on board to help her write the script and direct the sketches. She had found him funny when she had met him and thought he would be a good fit for the show. Since Harith had resigned and had the time to pursue a new venture, he had no problem saying yes. Jangan Ketawa was born.

“We literally went on the street with her and her friends and shot this sketch comedy program. A lot of it was ad-libbed and natural. It became a huge hit. In 1991, 6.1 million people, which was roughly a third of the country then, would stop what they were doing on Wednesday nights and tune in. That was my first foray into comedy. I was writing and directing, but towards the later years I also joined the cast,” he explained.

Paving the path

Besides working on Jangan Ketawa, Harith was keeping busy building up his stand up career. It happened quite by chance, when he was called up by a friend from university, Marina Mustafa, who was working in Public Relations for a hotel near the Subang Airport.

“She remembered me as the class clown, who was always telling funny stories to friends. She asked me to go on stage at a company function and tell these funny stories. I thought, why not? So I did it, and I was apparently successful. Through word of mouth, I kept getting called up to tell these funny stories to audiences at company dinners and events. At the time, there was no history of stand-up comedy in Malaysia.

“I knew about it because I used to watch Eddie Murphy shows on VHS videotapes, but most people didn’t know what I was doing. They were slightly confused, as this form of entertainment was so new to them, but I was making them laugh. Now, 25 years later, I am still telling these funny stories.”

At the time, Harith took his stand-up comedy gig lightly, enjoying the ride, not fully realising the impact or significance of what he was doing. In actual fact, he was making history. For the first 17 years, he was practically doing it alone. “I could call myself a pioneer, but there’s no real pioneering if there’s no one else around.

In the past eight years, due to YouTube and the Internet, everything is easily accessible and the younger generation are watching Chris Rock, Kevin Hart, Russell Peters, and there is a now a sizeable group of first-generation comedians in Malaysia. But back them I was alone. This is how people started calling me the ‘godfather’ of stand-up comedy here.”

Keeping current

Harith now runs his own company V Day Productions, under which he directs and writes film and TV productions. He also still does his stand-up acts and hosting gigs, often seen collaborating with the Crackhouse Comedy Club as well as his own sell-out shows, in front of thousands of spectators. His career is managed by his wife, model and doctor Jezamine Lim, and they have three children together.

Another reason his name has stayed popular throughout the years is perhaps his ability to stay relevant and keep up with the times. He has a large social media following and he has engaged thousands of followers on social media with his oft-hilarious and tongue-in-cheek comments about Malaysian politics and current events, as well as heartwarming posts of his children and wife.

It seems that Harith was born to be a trailblazer in more ways than one, as starting May 28th this year, he starting hosting his own late-night talk show OBVIOUSLY Harith Iskander, the first of its kind in Malaysia. It’s similar to likes of The Tonight Show in America, and air on Malaysia’s 24-hour news and current affairs channel Astro AWANI every Saturday at 9.30pm.

The variety show brings its audience whether at home or in the studio, an engaging hour of conversations with celebrities, personalities, prominent figures, local news updates, along with sketches and musical performances. Malaysian television has been missing a show of this kind for a long time now, and after meeting him, I’m even more convinced that there isn’t anyone better to pilot it!

This article was originally published in Sense of Malaysia (May/June 2016) which is available in print here.