We were lucky to catch up with Vik Pandya recently and have shared our conversation below.
Vik, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Are you able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen?
I started doing standup comedy when I had a 9-5 corporate job. 8 years later I’m now a full time standup comedian. It feels surreal to make a living telling jokes, and there’s definitely been an adjustment from a stable paycheck to sporadic payments from comedy, but I realized I can never go back to doing something I don’t love.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Vik Pandya is a nationally touring stand up comic based in Chicago. Known for his sharp self-deprecation, observational humor on dating, & hilarious crowd work, his comedy album ‘Friends With 401(k) Benefits’ debuted #1 on iTunes / Top 10 on the Billboard Charts. Vik’s Dry Bar Comedy special ‘No Refunds’ hit Top 10 on the platform, and his Only Fans TV special is now streaming.
Vik has opened for Trevor Wallace, Roy Wood Jr., & Michelle Wolf and performs regularly at Zanies Comedy Club, The Laugh Factory, & The Improv in Chicago. He’s been featured in 19 comedy festivals across the country including: San Francisco’s Sketchfest, NBC’s Breakout Fest, & the SLO Comedy Fest.
He’s also a regular opener for international acts like Vir Das, Zakir Khan & Atul Khatri. Vik’s comedy has appeared in Vulture, the Chicago Sun Times, & the Chicago Tribune. Follow him on IG / twitter @vikpandya and TikTok @vik_pandya
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
One of the most rewarding aspects of being a creative is seeing my work connect with other people. As a comedian this is what we are always striving for with our audience – connection. To have people come up to me after shows or online and say my comedy resonated with them, or that they “really needed this” is everything to me. It’s probably the main thing that keeps me pushing forward and let’s me know I’m on the right path.
How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?
The best way to support artists of all types is to share their work. Show up to shows. Hire them for your events. In comedy especially much of our work comes from word of mouth/referrals so a share or positive review can really go a long way. You never know who’s going to see it or who needs it.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.teamuscomedy.com/vik
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vikpandya/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vpcomedy
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/vikpandya
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@vikpandya
- Other: tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@vik_pandya