Nimesh Patel: ‘Lucky Lefty’

Comedian Nimesh Patel knew the second he was diagnosed with testicular cancer that he would be talking about it on stage very soon. And about a week later—after successful surgery to remove his right testicle—there he was at the Comedy Cellar in New York City making jokes about his one remaining ball. In this episode, SNL’s first Indian-American writer breaks down how he turned cancer into comedy in his new special ‘Lucky Lefty’ and shares his reaction to the way his comedy mentor Chris Rock tackled his own traumatic incident with Will Smith on stage. He also reveals why he turned down an invitation to appear on Tucker Carlson’s Fox News show after inadvertently becoming a hero on the right when he was kicked off stage by Columbia University students mid-show in 2018—and how that experience has made him rethink the debate over “cancel culture” in comedy. 

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