Internet has made artistic expression pure: Cyrus Sahukar

Video jockey-turned-actor Cyrus Sahukar, who started online show “The Bench”, says artistic expression over digital space is pure as there are no limitations.

“A lot more people are coming on the internet. There are bloggers, writers, people sharing funny and interesting videos. And with that, the artistic expression is very pure because you don’t have any limitations. I think it’s fun. Everything is opening up,” Cyrus told IANS in an interview.

The 34-year-old comedian started a production company last year called Humble Pie Productions which focuses on making exclusive content for the internet. The company is co-owned by Cyrus’ friends Rhea Kapoor and Karan Boolani.

“The Bench”, the first project under the banner, is based on a unique format. Picking up behind the camera moments from interviews of celebrities, the show is a compilation of funny instances between Cyrus and the celebrities.

“All the things that happen during the making of a show never go on air… ‘The Bench’ is a show about a show that never got made and everything went wrong with it,” he said, adding that the feel of the episodes are not like spoofs, but rather a satirical piece shot like a documentary.

Cyrus has already released two episodes of the show on the banner’s YouTube page. While the first episode was an unconventional interview with filmmaker Karan Johar, the second featured an angry Farah Khan.

When asked about his favourite comedian, Cyrus praised Kapil Sharma for “Comedy Nights with Kapil”.

“I think that in recent times, on a commercial level, I like Kapil. It’s really difficult to come up with something new every week, it takes a lot of hard work,” he said.

However, Kapil wasn’t the only one he praised. As it turned out, Cyrus commended political satirist and comedian John Oliver for his show “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver”.

“His (Oliver’s) show is actually one of the most amazing and incredible shows that I’ve seen in recent times. Also, it’s a fun way of learning what going on around the globe. He is one the best writers and presenters that we have today and the work they’re doing is so incredible,” said Cyrus, whose Bollywood filmography includes titles like “Rang De Basanti”, “Aisha” and “Khoobsurat“.