Hasan Minhaj Defends Fabricating Jokes About Daughter's Exposure to Anthrax & More in Stand-Up Routines

Hasan Minhaj admitted to stretching “the factual truth” of his real-life experiences while telling jokes during stand-up routines.

The 37-year-old comedian has relayed stories about his daughter being hospitalized after possibly being exposed to anthrax. He also recalled an experience where an FBI informant started attending his family’s mosque. In the story, Hasan made a joke to the informant and had the police called on him.

Both stories had false elements, which he said was alright because he was telling an “emotional truth” in his retellings. He revealed the truths about those stories and explained his comedy style in an interview.

Read more about what Hasan Minhaj had to say…

“Every story in my style is built around a seed of truth,” Hasan told The New Yorker. “My comedy Arnold Palmer is seventy per cent emotional truth — this happened — and then thirty per cent hyperbole, exaggeration, fiction.”

In his blend, he says “the factual truth is secondary.”

What was the truth about these stories?

In terms of the anthrax story, Hasan said that his daughter was never exposed. In fact, he wasn’t either. The truth was that he had received a letter with a powdery substance in it.

After opening it, he joked with his wife that it might be anthrax.

His story about an informant coming to his mosque was more convoluted. He explained that it was “based on a hard foul he received during a game of pickup basketball in his youth.”

They played against older men, who he and his friends believed might have been police officers. Hasan said that he was pushed to the ground during the game.

“I don’t think I’m manipulating,” he said about the stories. Furthermore, he opined that “The punch line is worth the fictionalized premise.”

He also said that his jokes and stories were “grounded in truth.”

Last month it was reported that Hasan was a possible frontrunner to become the new host of The Daily Show.