Speaking on anxiety, Indian-origin comedian Manjunath Naidu dies on stage in Dubai

New Delhi: An Indian-comedian Manjunath Naidu died while performing on stage at an event in Dubai. He collapsed while doing standup on anxiety, reports Khaleej Times.

Naidu was in the middle of his performance when he suffered a cardiac arrest. He complained of a high level of anxiety, sat down on the next to him and collapsed while the audience continued cheering because many thought it was a part of his act. Naidu was 36.

 "He was the last act in the line-up. He went on stage and was making people laugh with his stories. He was talking about his father and family. And then he got into a story of how he suffers from anxiety. And a minute into the story he collapsed," Miqdaad Dohadwala, his friend and fellow comedian, told Khaleej Times.

The audience couldn't figure till a very long period that Naidu has indeed died as they thought he was enacting a scene.

"People thought it was part of the act. They took it as a joke as he was talking about anxiety and then collapsed. Everyone rushed to the stage. He stopped breathing in our hands. The paramedics reached within 20 minutes but couldn't revive him. We took him to the hospital but after trying for 20 minutes they said Manju was gone. The man killed his performance and his performance killed him, " Dohadwala added.

Naidu was born in Abu Dhabi but later shifted base to Dubai. He was a popular figure in the local comedy circle there.