In a bid to tickle the funny bone of their audiences, brands are increasingly turning to stand-up comedians to convey their message in a unique and memorable way. From Uber to Tata AIA Life Insurance, Wendy’s to Deconstruct and from, Clovia to Britannia, brands across industries are hopping onto the humour bandwagon, and the results are nothing short of spectacular.
Wendy’s India is gearing up to celebrate its five-year anniversary with a bold move, a first-of-its-kind live roast show inside one of its restaurants. Slated for August 14, the event will feature comedian and reality-show firecracker Banti Banerjee dishing out unfiltered burns, real-time audience takedowns, and savage punchlines, no brand or burger spared. Meanwhile, Deconstruct’s recent ad starring comedian Samay Raina and influencer Apoorva Mukhija hilariously skewers skincare myths and unrealistic beauty expectations. The duo’s sharp comic timing helped the D2C brand strike a chord with younger, authenticity-seeking consumers, proving that the best way to win hearts (and wallets) might just be with a laugh. Similarly, very recently, Vijay Sales turned a stand-up punchline into a marketing win, teaming up with comedian Biswa Kalyan Rath who once joked about its plain name for a cheeky Instagram reel that doubles as an ad and an absurdist sketch.
Another example is Uber’s campaign partnering with popular stand-up comedians Aakash Gupta, Prashasti Singh, and Aashish Solanki. The brand shared witty one-liners on autos, leaving commuters in splits. But that’s not all, Uber also had launched the #SafetyNeverStops campaign, featuring stand-up comedians Shreeja Chaturvedi, Shreya Priyam Roy, and Shashi Dhiman, to highlight safety challenges faced by women and raise awareness about its efforts to provide safer transport options.
“To highlight everyday safety challenges faced by women—and to showcase how Uber is improving access to safer transport—we collaborated with stand-up comedians Shreeja Chaturvedi, Shreya Priyam Roy, and Shashi Dhiman. Using wit, we delivered a bold message: ‘Women’s safety isn’t a joke,’” says an Uber spokesperson. He further adds that humour resonates with daily life and helps balance the seriousness of the subject with a light-hearted approach that fosters trust, engagement, and conversation. “This helped us connect with audiences and reinforce Uber’s commitment to making every trip safer. Given the relatability, reach, and humour that stand-up comics bring, we’ve partnered with them in the past and are open to exploring similar collaborations in the future,” adds the spokesperson.
Speaking about the initiative, Comedian Shreeja Chaturvedi, says, “Humour is the fastest way to look like a young, vibrant brand, sometimes even to show that a brand is willing to take a joke on itself, which endears the brand to its audiences.”
Tata AIA Life Insurance, too, joined the humour brigade, partnering with Atul Khatri and Kenny Sebastian to create a campaign about life insurance awareness. The duo’s trademark brand of intelligent and subtle humour educated consumers about the importance and key benefits of life insurance solutions, while also conveying how Tata AIA Term insurance plans can protect consumers and enable them to lead a fikar-free life.
“Traditionally, conversations around life insurance have been serious and sombre. At Tata AIA, we believe in breaking that mould by making these discussions more engaging, relatable, and approachable. Our latest campaign taps into the universal language of laughter, blending the importance of securing Term insurance with the engaging world of stand-up comedy,” says Girish Kalra, Chief Marketing Officer, Tata AIA Life Insurance. “Through creative storytelling, we’ve introduced life insurance to the comedy genre, redefining how younger, digitally-savvy audiences perceive financial security. This campaign achieved a 7.6% brand lift, a remarkable achievement in our category. It proves that leaps backed by data can achieve exceptional results. As we continue to explore new communication channels for life insurance, we will keep experimenting with engaging creative formats,” explains Kalra.
Clovia, a lingerie brand, had earlier collaborated with comedian Neeti Palta to create a campaign about women’s innerwear taboos, using humour to generate relatability with its target audience. The brand also partnered with Kusha Kapila to create a viral video that took a witty spin on the everyday struggles of wearing a bra. “At Clovia, we recognise the power of humour in making brand messaging more engaging and relatable. The intention is to normalise conversations around lingerie while educating women. We consistently transform the latest pop culture references and fashion trends into lingerie-themed content, infusing humour and relatability to deeply resonate with our audience,” highlights Rachika Singh, Senior Brand Manager, Clovia. Speaking about Clovia’s work with Palta and Kusha Kapila, Singh says, “Almost a decade ago, we partnered with Neeti Palta, paving the way for influencer-driven comedy in marketing while sharing relatable anecdotes about traditional lingerie shopping. Later, we collaborated with Kusha Kapila to put up a witty spin on the everyday struggles of wearing a bra — especially the universally relatable feeling of ‘freedom’ when taking it off. The video went viral and struck a chord with women across demographics, driving organic shares, increasing engagement, and significantly boosting brand recall.”
Britannia, too, got into the act, collaborating with comedian Sahil Khatter to create a fun and memorable experience for National Croissant Day. The campaign for Britannia Treat Croissant brought out genuine smiles, thanks to Khatter’s effortless wit and ability to connect with people in everyday moments. “Humour has a unique way of bringing people together and making brands more relatable. Today, consumers engage with content that feels real and enjoyable. With Sahil Khatter, our National Croissant Day campaign for Britannia Treat Croissant creates a fun and memorable experience that brings out genuine smiles. His effortless wit and ability to connect with people in everyday moments make the celebration even more special. As brands, we have the opportunity to tap into storytelling that resonates with our consumers, and humour continues to be a great way to do that,” says Shekhar Agarwal, General Manager - Marketing, Britannia.
These campaigns demonstrate how humour marketing can be an effective way to engage audiences, create brand recall, and convey complex messages in a simple and entertaining way. Working with comedians brings about the virality factor that not only drives awareness but also positions the brand as fun and relatable, thereby encouraging deeper audience interaction and connection.
“Stand-up comedy videos are widely circulated on WhatsApp just like the Good Morning messages we all receive daily. To take this further, we worked with Zakir Khan, Biswa Kalyan Rath, Gurleen Pannu and Aakash Gupta who made WhatsApp new privacy and security features entertaining through their WhatsApp Good Morning social series. The campaign garnered 3.6 MN+ views with 3.5 MN+ in organic PR and 126k+ in engagement. It’s testament to the status comedians hold in popular culture. The global messaging platform witnessed an increased understanding of privacy tools as reflected in their user feedback and engagement metrics,” says Preranaa Khatri, Chief Business Officer, Only Much Louder.
So, why are brands betting big on humour marketing? The answer lies in the fact that humour has the power to break through the clutter, create an emotional connection with audiences, and make brands more relatable and human. In a world where consumers are bombarded with advertisements and marketing messages, humour provides a refreshing respite, making brands more memorable and impactful.
According to Comedian Neeti Palta, “Somehow a comedian doing brand work comes off more organic. The brief we get from brands is to subtly weave in the brand message without making it too ‘advertizy’. Makes it more palatable and believable. If nothing, then definitely more fun. In this age of data overload and shorter attention spans, this is a more effective way for brands to be seen or heard and not get clicked over for the next reel or next piece of content.”
Comedian Atul Khatri acknowledges that brands are often cautious, requiring scripts to be vetted by legal teams to avoid offending anyone. He shares, “Comedians can do a great job in marketing—as long as the brand gives them a free hand. Most brands, however, are understandably careful, and scripts usually need to go through legal vetting to avoid potential issues later on. Taking offence has, unfortunately, become an obsession.”
As the lines between entertainment and advertising continue to blur, humour marketing is likely to become an even more important strategy for brands looking to connect with their audiences in a meaningful way. Can brands continue to make us laugh, while also making us buy? Which of these campaigns did you find funny and bought the product later?
