PETALING JAYA: Comedian Harith Iskander, who was recently crowned the “Funniest Person in the World”, has paid a heartfelt tribute to fans from his home state of Johor for supporting him during the competition.

In an Instagram posting from Finland on Monday, Harith, who was born in Johor, recalled how Johoreans were helpful and understanding towards his mother when she first came to Malaysia.

“My late Mum’s (coming from England) first taste of Malaysia back in year 1962 was living in JB (Johor Baru) where orang Johor were so helpful and accepting of her. Her first Raya was in Muar,” he said.

Harith said that despite growing up in Kuala Lumpur, “roots will always be roots” and thanked the “Bangsa Johor” for the support he received from them during the competition.

He also posted an image of him holding his trophy and wearing a dark blue hoodie with a Johor flag patch.

The comedian said that the hoodie was given to him as a gift by Johor Crown Prince Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim and it had kept him warm in Helsinki.

He added that he was looking forward to eating a bowl of Johor laksa at his favourite stall upon his return to Malaysia.

Harith, who has been in the stand-up comedy business for more than 25 years, beat out 88 other comedians from around the world en route to the final.

The finalists for the various stages of the competition were chosen through a global online fan voting process, with voting lines staying open for 24 hours after Thursday’s final.

In the final, the Malaysian frontrunner defeated the four remaining contestants — Alex Calleja from the Philippines, Katerina Vrana from Greece, Mino van Nassau from India and David Kilimnick from Israel — to bag the trophy and US$100,000 (RM444,845) cash prize.-thestar