SEASON 2 EPISODE 5

Mae Da misses how funny people in Iran are

In her late teens, Mae Da moved from Iran to Australia. From awkward attempts at modest uniforms to navigating high school mean girls, the culture shock of starting over in a foreign country hit hard. Years later, she’s turned pain into punchlines - using comedy as a powerful tool for healing, connection, and laughter. In this episode of Comedy Karma, Mae Da shares her journey into stand-up, and the real-life stories behind some of her best jokes. We hear about how growing up in Tehran shaped her, the hardship in navigating her new life in Melbourne, and how becoming a mother made her more fearless on stage.

They wanted to accommodate for Muslim girls, but the uniform was so ugly.
Comedian Mae Da on Australian schools

Find full episodes of Comedy Karma on the SBS South Asian YouTube channel. Follow the series your podcast app such as the SBS Audio app, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and more.

Comedy Karma is created and hosted by Aditya Gautam

Additional Editing by Tarun Tyagi

SBS Team: Joel Supple, Bernadette Phương Nam Nguyễn, Max Gosford and Philip Soliman