Rajiv Satyal: "The Jester is King" | Talks at Google

Rajiv Satyal is an Indian-American standup comedian. He hosts his own weekly show at the Laugh Factory in Hollywood and has garnered 4 million+ YouTube views. In this Talk at Google he is speaking about the role of comedy in society.
Are comedians now society’s most trusted truth-tellers?
In olden times, the role of the court jester was to convey truths to the King without fear of retribution. Today, oh, how our Kings have fallen: the government, the media, the church, the business world - who operates with credibility anymore? Are comedians the last ones standing?
Comedian Rajiv Satyal, who has been hired by everybody from the US and Indian Governments to Fortune 500 companies to over 100 colleges, created an internet video entitled I AM INDIAN, which has been viewed over 50 million times, shared by Bollywood stars, and used to introduce the Indian Prime Minister around the world. Satyal posits that, ironically, it’s due to his skills as a standup comic that his message was taken so seriously.
Satyal breaks down the five elements of communication success, showing you why hiring a jester may be the cleverest move a King can make.
Rajiv Satyal is a Los Angeles-based comedian/host. He began his career in his hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio. Rajiv had an unusual entry into standup, doing his act for then-World No. 1 tennis player Pete Sampras in a locker room. Satyal has some interesting claims to fame: he opened for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in front of 17,000 people. He made the massively viral I AM INDIAN video, which was shared by Bollywood stars and used to introduce the Indian Prime Minister in Shanghai and Dubai. He has opened for Russell Peters more than any other Indian comedian. Rajiv even hosted Dave Chappelle’s very first show after his much-publicized African hiatus.
Satyal performs weekly at the Laugh Factory in Hollywood. He has garnered 50 million+ online views and been featured on NBC, NPR, Nickelodeon, Netflix, Bob & Tom, Times Now, Zee TV, Pandora, The Wall Street Journal, The Huffington Post, India Abroad, and the LA Times.
Rajiv has performed on three continents. He co-created the world-touring Make Chai Not War, a Hindu/Muslim stand-up show. The U.S. State Dept. sponsored it, sending it to seven cities in India. The show became part of the Congressional Record after being mentioned on Capitol Hill to Secretaries of State HIllary Clinton and John Kerry.
The University of Cincinnati engineer and former P&G marketer has done stand-up at more than 100 colleges. He named his alma mater’s online radio station “Bearcast,” launched/managed a Miss India America’s career, and has spoken to audiences from Fortune 500 companies to NFL players on innovation, diversity, and personal branding. His corporate clients include P&G (10 times), GE (7 times), General Mills, Quaker, Cisco and more. He runs a consulting business called the Standpoint Agency, which helps marketers generate insights for their brands.
Satyal has acted in national commercials and in TV shows. He has recorded 127 episodes of his podcast, The TanGent Show, and has interviewed everyone from Deepak Chopra to Seth Godin to Preity Zinta. Rajiv produces sketches, improvises, and writes TV ads.
Rajiv wrote No Man’s Land, a 100-minute one-person show about his dating life that sold out all six performances from LA to NY to San Francisco to Cincinnati. This show actually led to Satyal’s marriage, which itself had a comedic arc: Rajiv proposed to his girlfriend while opening for Kevin Nealon, and at his wedding, Russell Peters finally opened for him.