For Saaniya Abbas, hell is personal to everyone, and while for Brits it’s likely to contain microwaved cups of tea and Americans, as a non-practising Muslim, Abbas expects an afterlifetime of judgement and antagonism from… her mother. As an Indian-born woman living in Dubai and travelling between the UK and the USA, Hellarious, Abbas’ new 60-minute stand-up show at the Soho Theatre, is filled with cultural comparisons with an eclectic setlist that ranges from being single in your 30s to childhood punishments, colonoscopies and judgy AI.
The charm of Abbas’ comedy is the rolling conversation that has no single theme or developing thread but a seemingly fresh bundle of quick-fire insights that give the comedian the freedom to adapt her work in the moment, using plenty of audience interaction to build rapport and a momentum that she uses to expand the discussions. And Abbas’ international platform is useful in reflecting the predominantly British audience back to themselves and finding plenty of humour not only in our own national quirks but also in how they stack up against others.
Abbas finds lots of material in the multiple and dual heritage audience at the Soho Theatre with people who share her religion to varying degrees or who relate to aspects of Indian heritage and culture. One of the strongest and most topical moments compares the severity of parental punishments, dismissing the ‘naughty step’ as a ridiculous and soft British penalty before taking a skewering swipe at Peter Mandelson and Andrew Windsor, currently on the political equivalent. And when the audience proves a little reticent, Abbas disarmingly notes that Brits weren’t so shy 300-years ago, and it is the sweetness with which these lines are delivered that makes them so deadly.
And Abbas finds the sharp commentary in anecdotes about other countries as well, always disguised in silly or ridiculous stories, such as a commentator on her Instagram account assuming she was going to America to get pregnant and take up residency. This sets up a joke about abortion in India being safer and legal. Similarly, Abbas offers some extra jokes that cannot be performed in her Dubai set, which makes the Soho Theatre audience feel like they are getting something special, yet it is all part of these smart cross-cultural connections and comparisons that make Hellarious feel fresh but also drawn vividly from her experience.
In 60 minutes, the show covers a lot of ground, including her divorce from a Brit in Dubai, discovering all the categories of porn for the first time at 26, crossing Indian roads and loving Taylor Swift, and yet it all melds together in an organised structure disguised as a stream of consciousness. Abbas concludes that failure is the connecting thread through her life – but most performers would argue the same, things going hilariously wrong is the substance of comedy – and Abbas’ success resides not in finding her hell but in being authentic about it.
Runs until 14 February 2026
