Renowned comedian Raju Srivastava is no more. He died in New Delhi at the age of 58. Raju was admitted to AIIMS Delhi on August 10 after he collapsed while working out at the gym.
In the 80s, Raju Srivastava shifted to Mumbai from Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, to fulfill his dreams. His initial days were full of struggle and he began driving a taxi to make ends meet.
Raju did brief roles in films like ‘Tezaab’ (1988), ‘Maine Pyar Kiya’ (1989) and ‘Baazigar’ (1993) to survive in the Maximum city.
He got his first break in 1994 after he bagged the show ‘Tea Time Manoranjan’ on Doordarshan. He then went on to feature in TV series ‘Shaktimaan’ as Dhurandhar Singh. He was part of the show from 1998 to 2005.
Raju Srivastava gained recognition after he featured in the first season of ‘The Great Indian Laughter Challenge’ in 2005. His character Gajodhar Bhaiya was loved by all. However, Sunil Pal was the winner of the comedy reality show, while Raju was the second runner-up.
Read More:- Sunil Pal remembers Raju Srivastava, says 'he was, is and will always remain the king of stand-up comedy'
Nearly four years after appearing on ‘The Great Indian Laughter Challenge’, Raju Srivastava was seen as a contestant on ‘Bigg Boss 3’, which was hosted by megastar Amitabh Bachchan. He also participated in ‘Nach Baliye’ season 6 with his wife, Shikha Srivastava, which was judged by Shilpa Shetty, Sajid Khan and Terrence Lewis. The couple was eliminated in the seventh week.
Raju Srivastava was a regular on ‘Comedy Circus’ between 2007 and 2014. He left the audience impressed with his expressions and mimicry. The show was judged by Archana Puran Singh, Shekhar Suman and various others over its multiple seasons.
The late actor then played various roles in the Kapil Sharma hosted entertainment show ‘Comedy Nights with Kapil’.
Raju Srivastava was last seen as part of the popular comedy show ‘The Kapil Sharma Show’, in which he played multiple comical roles.
Also Watch | Sunil Pal remembers Raju Srivastava, says 'he was, is and will always remain the king of stand-up comedy'