It’s unfair to say comedians are unserious people –Helen Paul
Simply because comedians make people laugh, sometimes they say silly things to make that effect, it is quite easy to pass them off as unserious people. However, during a chat with ace comedienne, Helen Paul, she felt slighted to be called an unserious person because of her job.
The humour merchant said that it is unfair to call comedians unserious people simply because they bring laughter to the lives of their audience. In her words, she described comedians as intelligent people.
She said, “I beg to disagree that comedians are not serious people and I think it is unfair for anyone to make such remarks because it takes an intelligent person to bring out a joke from a serious issue. It takes an intelligent person to see a family crying because they lost a loved one and he is able to make them laugh. Comedy is a ministry and not just a business; it is a ministry that brings joy and happiness. Not only pastors have ministries. A comedian sees things from other perspectives. When Nigerians go through hard times, comedians still upload materials on social media to make people laugh. For instance when many Nigerians lost money to the MMM Ponzi scheme, we still found a way to make people laugh. Comedy is not for unserious people. It is not something you get into just because of the money, you must be passionate about the craft and I am passionate about it. That is why I keep learning.”
And just like her colleague Basketmouth said in a recent video that went viral that you would not see him in a club, the ace comedienne gave reasons why you would hardly see her in a party except she has a performance. She told Saturday Beats that if she needed to party, she knows where to do so.
“I don’t like attending parties because I have a lot of work to do. Would I leave my children at home to attend parties when I am not working? You must be in a place where you have to function not a place where you are not relevant. I party at home every time. I am the disc jockey and if I play music, you would be surprised. It is fun. Women have lots of work to do, handling of the kids, doing their home works, making sure your husband is fine, running errands, etc. The responsibility of a woman is to maintain the house and that is a lot of work,” she said.
Known to be a restless, bubbly and energetic person, the comedienne who is also an actress and a singer said that she is an entirely different person at home.
“I am a different person when I am on stage and when I am at home. Acting is my job but my home is somewhere I go to think. When I am home, I am calmer. When I am outside, my mission is to make people happy even if I am not,” Helen Paul said.