Patrick Idringi aka Salvado, one of Uganda’s best known comedians. PHOTO | FILE
Patrick Idringi aka Salvado, one of Uganda’s best known comedians recently put on his first one-man show dubbed “Man from Ombokolo,” which was a success, judging from the reaction of those who attended.
The show, held at the Victoria Hall of the Kampala Serena Hotel, was sold out, an indicator that comedy in Uganda has come of age and can now compete with other forms of entertainment such as live music concerts and theatre.
Salvado said, “Comedy is still growing in Uganda. We haven’t yet exploited its full potential because we still lack professionalism. But there are signs that we are on the right track.”
Fellow comedian Kenneth Kimuli aka Pablo noted: “Comedy in Uganda is finally being accepted as an alternative form of entertainment especially in the corporate world. The task ahead is for the comedians to get professional.”
Salvado’s jokes were made up of old and new material that tackled issue ranging from tribalism, alcoholism and drink driving to the characteristics of his kinsmen in his maternal clan in Ombokolo in West Nile and everything in between.
Although he is a master of suspense, Salvado’s can begin telling a joke, skip to another and return to the earlier joke, confusing the audience. He was accompanied by the Ombokolo Boys, Myko Ouma, Lydia Jazmine, Janzi Band and Bebe Cool with his Gagamel band.
He told The EastAfrican that he decided to dub the show “Man from Ombokolo” as a way of introducing himself to his fans as an individual comedian. “Because this show was a first of its kind, I needed to introduce myself to my fans. Ombokolo is my mother’s ancestral home in West Nile.”
A telecommunications engineer by training, Salvado is also an actor, and co-founder and director of the Crackers, a stand-up comedy outfit that has weekly shows at Laftaz Comedy Lounge in Centenary Park in Kampala.
He left MTN Uganda in 2011 where he had worked as a switch engineer to pursue his passion for comedy, which he realised in 2009 after coming second in the MNet reality TV series dubbed Standup Uganda.
Quitting his day job has clearly paid off because he has become one of the most sought after comedians and emcees in Uganda. “I went into comedy because I love to be challenged. One thing with comedy is that you have to come up with new lines every day. That kind of challenge is what pushes me,” he said.
