Review: UROOJ ASHFAQ: OH NO!, Soho Theatre

“Hello, welcome, my parents are divorced”

Urooj Ashfaq, winner of Best Newcomer at the Edinburgh Comedy Awards, has brought her show, Oh No!, to the Soho Theatre. She was originally a part of Soho Theatre through Soho Theatre India, which has introduced over 30 Indian acts to the UK. At the start of the show, Ashfaq asks how many people in the audience are Indian and then asks them if they miss home. When some respond that they do, she gives them some advice - “If you want home, come home!”

From the beginning, Ashfaq tells her own story and how it has shaped her, from growing up in India and writing in her diaries (we get to hear some hilarious entries) to getting an undergraduate degree in psychology to ending up in therapy herself.  Ashfaq claims that she is “edgy in India” because she focuses on topics including divorce and therapy, concepts that might be common here but may not be as popular in India. Indeed, much of her comedy revolves around the divorce of her parents, and she compares the view of food allergies in the UK to divorce in India, a hilarious comparison that actually makes quite a bit of sense.

Along with talking about her own life in India, she talks with crowd members about their experiences and how some Indian audience members have ended up in London. She discusses Indian audiences and their tendency to run late to shows, which is proven right by the number of latecomers who come in throughout her performance.  According to Ashfaq, Soho Theatre gave her a choice of whether or not she wanted latecomers, and she was happy to have them come even “forty minutes in.” 

A particularly funny moment is when Ashfaq describes her experiences with therapy and how her friends who cannot afford it will ask her questions to ask the therapist, which leads to awkward conversations about porn addiction, a loss of interest in sex and then a desire to sleep with everyone, to which the therapist is ready to diagnose Ashfaq with Multiple Personality Disorder. There is also a bit in which Ashfaq asks the crowd about their experience with therapy, commiserating with another woman who had started with a male Indian therapist and quickly realised they were not the right choice for them.

One of the highlights of Ashfaq’s show is her crowd work, which is seamlessly integrated into the show over sixty minutes. There was one audience member in particular, a latecomer, who nearly became a part of the show as Ashfaq was discussing therapy and the audience member was actually a psychologist. 

Ultimately, Urooj Ashfaq: Oh No! is a fun hour of comedy with some excellent crowd work that will leave you wanting more from the new comedian. I look forward to seeing what she will bring to the stage in the future.

Urooj Ashfaq: Oh No! runs until 20 January at Soho Theatre before touring the UK. Dates and tickets for the tour can be found here.

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