- Zarna Garg's latest comedy special Practical People Win premieres on Hulu July 18.
- The comedian shared what went into creating the perfect comedy special.
- She also revealed how her family feels about being the subject of her comedy routines.
Over the last few years, folks love to tune in to see the comedy of Zarna Garg.
Telling tales about her family, her Indian heritage and how they intersect as an immigrant in the United States, the attorney-turned-comic's approach to humor is one that feels both foreign and so familiar to audiences worldwide. Zarna has a growing social media following, and she also wrote down her story in the form of a New York Times bestselling memoir. But with her upcoming Hulu special Practical People Win premiering on July 18, it's Zarna's comedy that truly shines — and people can't help but love it.
So, how does Zarna manage to come up with the perfect comedy routine? As she exclusively told Good Housekeeping ahead of the release of Practical People Win, there are key themes threaded throughout her entire act. What's more, they're things everyone can relate to, immigrant or otherwise.
"I think people enjoy that almost everything in my set comes out of my true life experiences," she told us over Zoom. "There's no sermonizing or preaching. I'm here to remind everybody why they're amazing people. Every person who watches my show is going to come out feeling like we're good people, and they need to be reminded why people like me leave everything to come here."
While Zarna's comedy typically stems from what she's lived through, she also knows her loved ones may feel a certain way about their lives being material for her to use whenever she wishes. Given how she constantly brings up her daughter, two sons, husband and mother-in-law with every show she does, it's easy to wonder what they think about being the subject of Zarna's jokes.
Luckily, Zarna noted that her family is incredibly supportive of her career. And if that's not enough, she's even expanded the circle to include some quips featuring her kids' friends as well.
"Every step of the way, they're involved," she added about her family being the subject of her act. "I'm mining all their life stories. too — including who they're dating. I use it all. They understand why we're doing this, and they're very smart kids. They understand what's a joke and what's not — they know not to take things personally. We all laugh together, and it's not a big deal."
As fans will get to meet some important family members in Practical People Win, Zarna promised that the most essential element to creating the best comedy special is not necessarily the jokes or trying to convey a message to the audience.
As Zarna concluded to us, she hopes people see the perfect ingredient to any of her comedy routines comes from the love she has for those she talks about and the ones who attend her performances all over the world.
"There's so much love in this whole special," she said at the end of the call. "You'll see in the visuals, the jokes — we have tried to layer some love in everywhere. I'm on a mission for families to enjoy things together, and I think that my special is one of those moments in time that everyone will feel a bit of love ... Yes, it's a breezy 60 minutes you can sit by yourself, but it's all about love and creating things families, grandparents, cousins, uncles, aunties will appreciate along the way."
Practical People Win is streaming now on Hulu.
As the entertainment and news associate editor for Good Housekeeping, Adrianna (she/her) writes about everything TV, movies, music and pop culture. She graduated from Yeshiva University with a B.A. in journalism and a minor in business management. She covers shows like The Rookie, 9-1-1 and Grey's Anatomy, though when she’s not watching the latest show on Netflix, she’s taking martial arts or drinking way too much coffee.
