Half-Sikh, half-European US comic Arj Barker tried stand-up comedy as a dare, at the age of 19, and was instantly bitten by the bug. He dropped out of college and hit the road, and has rarely stopped since.

As well as his native USA – where he has appeared on all the late-night shows including Letterman, Conan, and the Tonight Show - he regularly appears on the international festival circuit across the UK, Australia and New Zealand and beyond. He appeared in Edinburgh every year from 1997, when he won the Perrier best newcomer prize, to 2000.

He co-wrote an off-Broadway show in 2004 called the The Marijuana-Logues, a parody of The Vagina Monologues about dope-smoking

That same year he landed the lead role in an NBC sitcom, Nearly Nirvana, in 2004. But he was later replaced by the show's creator, Ajay Sahgal, and still the show never aired.

In 2007, he won a recurring supporting role in the HBO hit Flight Of The Conchords, playing Brett and Germain’s friend Dave.