Comedian Raju Srivastav, 58, breathed his last earlier this morning at Delhi’s AIIMS after a prolonged suffering. He was admitted to the hospital following a cardiac arrest on August 10 this year. He will be cremated tomorrow at 9:30 am in the capital. Srivastav, who has also been a part of films like Aamdani Atthani Kharcha Rupaiyaa (2001), Main Prem Ki Diwani Hoon (2003) and Toilet: Ek Prem Katha (2017) is survived by his wife and children, Antara and Ayushman.
Stand-up comic Ahsaan Qureshi, who started his career with Srivastav in the first season of the reality show The Great Indian Laughter Challenge in 2005, exclusively talks to News18 and shares his fond memories of the deceased comic. The duo also appeared in the film Bombay To Goa (2007).
Excerpts:
“My association with Raju Srivastav goes back to 2005 when we both met as contestants on The Great Indian Laughter Challenge. It was an amazing experience sharing the stage with him. In the last 17 years that I know him, I realised that all he wanted was to make everyone laugh. Just like many others, he too came to make a name in the film industry and he was really successful in doing so.
I remember the incident when the entire nation was praying for Amitabh Bachchan after he met with an accident on the sets of Coolie (1983). Similarly, for the last 42 days, the whole of India was praying and hoping for a miracle and hoping that Raju bhai gets up and makes everyone laugh again. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. For me, he was more than a contemporary. It feels like I have lost a member of my family. He was like an elder brother to me.
Sunil (Pal), Raju and I would often try to catch up and reminisce about our old days when we would be looking for work. Raju had once told me about how he would stay in one small room with three people and would often go and stand in a queue outside a local phone booth through which he would make calls to enquire about work.
I remember last meeting him at an office in Mumbai. Sunil was also there and we enquired about how to apply for the subsidy for films. He also discussed the idea of making films with all the comedians in it like a sequel to our hit film Bombay To Goa. It was his last wish and all of us would try and fulfil his wish of making a film with all comedians."
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