Stand Up

Madhu is 17 going on 40 and starting her final year of sixth-form college. She has the weight of the world on her shoulders: her dad is putting pressure on her to do a law degree, which is the last thing on earth she wants to do. Her estranged sister is raising her nephew by herself in London, and contact is strictly forbidden. And Madhu needs money so she's pulling in every single shift she can at a pizza place. What she really wants, though, is to be a world-famous stand-up comedian ...

When a YouTube clip of her dealing with college bullies with a hilarious verbal take-down goes viral, Madhu is suddenly catapulted into the bright lights of stardom - and it's not long before a fellow Asian comedian gives her her first break as a support act on stage with her. But the road to comedy glory is not a barrel of laughs - and Madhu's own struggles with her family and identity soon catch up with her.

Can she find her way to the lighter side of life, or will she lose everything she knows and loves in the process?

About the Author

Nikesh Shukla is the author of three novels. His latest, The One Who Wrote Destiny was published in 2018. His debut novel, Coconut Unlimited, was shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award 2010. His second novel, Meatspace was released to critical acclaim in 2014. Nikesh has written for The Guardian, Observer, Independent, Esquire, Buzzfeed, Vice, BBC2, LitHub, Guernica and BBC Radio 4. Nikesh is also the editor the bestselling essay collection, The Good Immigrant which won the reader's choice at the Books Are My Bag Awards.

Nikesh was one of Foreign Policy Magazine's 100 Global Thinkers and The Bookseller's 100 most influential people in publishing in 2016 and in 2017. He is the co-founder of the literary journal, The Good Journal and The Good Literary Agency