Ahir Shah, Urooj Ashfaq win top honours at Edinburgh Comedy Awards 2023

British Asian stand-up Ahir Shah has won the Best Show award at the 2023 Edinburgh Comedy Awards for his show Ends.

Shah, who had previously been nominated for the top comedy prize at the Edinburgh Fringe festival in 2017 and 2018, dedicated the prize to his wife-to-be, and to his late director Adam Brace, who died in May this year, aged 43.

“Turns out he was really holding me back,” he joked.

He described his win as the “second best day” of his year, after his wedding, which is taking place this autumn.

Talking about the achievement for south Asian representation, he remarked, “F*** me, we got No 10, now Best Newcomer and Best Show.”

Shah is also known for his writing and performances on BBC Two’s show The Mash Report, as well as appearances on multiple UK panel shows; Have I Got News For You, and Mock The Week, to name a few.

Urooj Ashfaq, a Mumbai-based comic, who previously performed her show earlier this year at Soho Theatre in London, walked away with the Best Newcomer Award for her debut show Oh No!

Ashfaq and Shah were amongst the following comics in this year’s 2023 Award nominees:

Best Comedy Show Award Nominees 2023:

Ania Magliano: I Can’t Believe You’ve Done This

Ahir Shah: Ends

Emmanuel Sonubi: Curriculum Vitae

Ian Smith: Crushing

Janine Harouni: Man’oushe

Julia Masli: ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

Kieran Hodgson: Big In Scotland

Phil Ellis: Phil Ellis’s Excellent Comedy Show

Best Newcomer Award Nominees 2023:

Bill O’Neill: The Amazing Banana Brothers

Dan Tiernan: Going Under

Lindsey Santoro: Pink Tinge

Louise Young: Feral

Martin Urbano: Apology Comeback Tour

Paddy Young: Hungry, Horny, Scared

Urooj Ashfaq: Oh No!