Senior Profile: Jehan Madhani

Watch out, Tina and Amy — there is new talent on the scene. Jehan Madhani (LA '16), a Tufts/SMFA Dual Degree student, co-founded the all-female comedy group, Tufts Funny Ladies. Madhani has certainly made her mark on the Tufts comedy scene and plans to further her comedic and artistic talents after graduation.

A Texas native, Madhani grew up loving to draw. In middle school, she aimed to draw "the best Harry Potter fan art" there could be, subsequently becoming interested in animation in high school. The transition from animation to comedy in college was natural, although she never lost her passion for the former, continuing to study it through the SMFA, she said.

"Animation, for me, was always a way to make people laugh...I came to [comedy] pretty late, but it was always in the back of my mind. It went from posting funny Facebook statuses I thought my friends' moms would like to joining The Institute," she said.

According to her, Madhani started comedy during her eighth semester. She mentioned that although she had been to stand-up and Major: Undecided meetings her freshman year, she had not felt comfortable until her senior year. Instead, throughout her first three and a half years, she pursued activities such as a WFMO radio show and the Quidditch team. Finally, during her senior year, she auditioned for The Institute. She succeeded and has been a member since then.

In addition to receiving encouragement from friends and family, Madhani points to a certain female comedian as being a driving force behind her decision to do comedy.

"I think, for me, a big thing was seeing Mindy Kaling, someone of South Asian descent, making comedy and deciding [for myself] that I could do that and that I wanted to do that," she said.

She noted that joining Tufts' comedy groups was a great decision. She mentioned that although the Quidditch team provided her a community she loved, the comedy scene provides her with a community while simultaneously serving her passions.

Besides The Institute, Madhani also lent a hand in shaping Tufts Funny Ladies (TFL), the newest all-female comedy group on campus. Regarding its creation, Madhani said that the original idea was not her own. She noted that Aliza Small (LA '16), first female director of The Institute, created an eponymous Facebook page and added the women from comedy groups such as Cheap Sox, Major: Undecided, The Institute and Tufts Stand-Up Comedy Collective. Madhani said that the original purpose of TFL was much different than its current one.

"[Small] wanted to create a digital space, essentially, for everyone to talk about their struggles because being a woman in comedy isn't necessarily easy," she said.

With Madhani and others' help, the group shifted its purpose, realizing they could showcase the comedy they had to offer to the Tufts community. She aided in its becoming an on-campus group this semester. Since then, Tufts Funny Ladies recently held its first show. Madhani noted that with TFL, the members not only could make comedy together, but also everyone from different groups could still get to know each other and provide a supportive environment for one another.

"We [in Tufts Funny Ladies] all love our individual comedy groups, but with this group, I think we all have this immediate comfort," she said.

As for the future of TFL, Madhani pointed to two of her fellow co-founders, juniorsIlana Hamer and Isha Patnaik. She said she feels confident in leaving the group into the hands of two very dedicated, hardworking individuals.

Madhani said that she wants to do comedy in some form after graduation. She mentioned that she has previously held a variety of internships, including one at the Jim Henson Company in Los Angeles. Now, however, she said she is aiming for a more full-time position as a production assistant, possibly in New York City. Madhani said that her end goal is to professionally write television and possibly film comedy.

"I'm eager to create and tell stories that I would want to see and identify with," she said. "So while I'm not quite sure what that would look like (creating a television show, writing a graphic novel, directing a film) I'm eager to share the type of diverse narratives that I would've wanted to see on screen when I was younger."