Raju Srivastava Age, Death, Wife, Children, Family, Biography & More

Bio/Wiki
Birth name	Satya Prakash Srivastava [1]The Times of India
Other name	Gajodhar Bhaiya [2]The Tribune Note: This was his stage name.
Profession(s)	Comedian, Actor, Politician
Famous for	Becoming the second runner up of the comedy show The Great Indian Laughter Challenge in 2005
Physical Stats & More
Height (approx.)	in centimeters- 170 cm in meters- 1.70 m in feet & inches- 5’ 7”
Eye Colour	Black
Hair Colour	Black
Career
Debut	Film: Tezaab (1988) TV: Dekh Bhai Dekh (1994)
Awards, Honours, Achievements	• 2016: Yash Bharati Award by the Government of Uttar Pradesh • 2016: Award at Gata Rahe Mera Dil- PHD Excellence Awards & Musical Evening • 2017: Dadasaheb Phalke Excellence Award • 2020: Award for one of the top 100 personalities of India
Political Career
Political Party	• Samajwadi Party (2013-2014) • Bharatiya Janata Party (2014-Present)
Political Journey	• In 2013, Samajwadi Party fielded him from the Kanpur Lok Sabha constituency for the 2014 general elections • On 11 March 2014, he returned the Samajwadi Party (SP) Lok Sabha ticket and quit the party, citing he was not getting enough support from the local units of the ruling party. • On 19 March 2014, he joined Bharatiya Janata Party. • In the same year, he was nominated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to be a brand ambassador of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan in U.P.
Personal Life
Date of Birth	25 December 1963 (Wednesday)
Birthplace	Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh
Date of Death	21 September 2022
Place of Death	AIIMS, Delhi
Age (at the time of death)	58 Years
Death Cause	Cardiac Arrest Note: On 21 September 2022, Raju Srivastava died at New Delhi's AIIMS, where he had been undergoing treatment for 41 days after he suffered cardiac arrest while working out in a gym in Delhi in August 2022. [3]The Hindu
Zodiac sign	Capricorn
Signature
Nationality	Indian
Hometown	Kidwai Nagar, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh
Controversies	Threat calls from Pakistan In 2010, Raju received threat calls from Pakistan in which he was asked by the caller to stop making fun of underworld don Dawood Ibrahim and Pakistan in his shows. In 2021, he again received a death threat call from Pakistan in which the caller warned him that he and his family would be killed if he didn't stop making fun of Pakistan in his shows. The caller also told him that Raju would have to face the same situation as Kamlesh Tiwari, president of Hindu Samaj Party (HSP), who was murdered in his home in Lucknow in 2019. Raju shared a video on Twitter in which he said, When India was attacked by Pakistan and China, I was very angry. My anger flows through comedy. I’m being bullied. My condition will be like that of Kamlesh Tiwari of Lucknow. My children will be killed, but I will speak only about my country. I am working my way up. I was happy when my country’s soldiers carried out surgical strikes." Thereafter, he registered an FIR in Maharashtra against the caller. He also asked Home Minister Amit Shah to launch an enquiry against the caller. [4]India Today Suing An Unidentified Person For Defamation In 2017, Raju filed a police complaint against an unknown person at Oshiwara police station for defaming him by using his picture with disgraceful jokes about Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other members of the BJP which were circulated on social media. [5]Mid-day Extortion By a Worker of Samajwadi Yuvjan Sabha In 2019, a person named Rahul, who claimed to be a worker of SP's Yuvjan Sabha, demanded for Rs. 10 Lakh from Raju after blackmailing him to expose a video in which Raju could be seen romancing a women in his house in Lucknow. Raju sent an application to DGP of Hazratganj OP Singh against Rahul after which the accused was arrested. [6]Amar Ujala Double standard of Raju In 2021, Raju received a lot of criticism after he slammed the makers of the web series Tandav. In a video that he posted on social media, he said, How dare you make fun of Hindu deities? I dare you to make shows critiquing other religions. You won't be able to do because you will be killed. Saif Ali Khan has been supporting this again and again because it's given that Hindus are kind enough to forgive. But it's time for stringent action. Merely removing a scene isn't enough, perpetrators should be punished." After his criticism, filmmaker Vinod Kapri posted an old video of Raju in which he was seen making fun of lord Brahma.
Relationships & More
Marital Status (at the time of death)	Married
Marriage Date	17 May 1993
Family
Wife/Spouse	Shikha Srivastava (homemaker)
Children	Son- Aayushmaan Srivastava (sitar player) Daughter- Antara Srivastava (film director)
Parents	Father- Ramesh Chandra Srivastava (also known as Balai Kaka) (poet and government employee) Mother- Saraswati Srivastava (homemaker)
Siblings	Brother(s)- 5 Deepu Srivastava (comedian) Sister- Sudha Srivastava
Favourites
Actor	Amitabh Bachchan
TV Shows	Bhabiji Ghar Par Hain! (2015), Happu Ki Ultan Paltan (2019)

Some Lesser Known Facts About Raju Srivastav

• Raju Srivastava was an Indian comedian, actor, and politician, who became the second runner-up in the comedy show ‘The Great Indian Laughter Challenge’ in 2005. He was also popular for his character Gajodhar Bhaiya, which he introduced in the same show. He served as the chairman of the Film Development Council, Uttar Pradesh. On 21 September 2022, he died of cardiac arrest at AIIMS, New Delhi. ^[7]Twitter – ANI

• Raju was very good at mimicry since childhood. He used to imitate his teachers in school for which he was scolded because his teachers said that it was an insult to them. Raju also used to mimic Indira Gandhi in front of his relatives by observing her voice on the radio because he did not have a TV at home.

• In an interview, Raju said that when he started doing comedy, many of his relatives were not happy with his profession, and they would often complain to his parents about his choice of work. In the interview, he further said,
  

  My relatives felt insulted by my comedy. They used to think that, children need to study and not recite jokes at the homes of other people. They used to complain to my parents and thought would bring dishonour to my family. Comedy as an art was not known. They opposed the same.”

• When he was a youngster, he became a big fan of Amitabh Bachchan. He used to keep the same hairstyle as him and put up his posters in his room. In an interview, Raju said that people used to call him to their homes to entertain them during family functions.
  

  Rahul Srivastava as Amitabh Bachchan in The Kapil Sharma Show

• He decided to pursue stand-up comedy as a profession after he received Rs. 50 for one of his performances at his neighbour’s home.

• When he came to Mumbai in 1982, he worked as a driver to earn money. Later, he released his first audio jokes cassette ‘Hasna Mana Hai,’ which gained a lot of popularity.
  

  Raju Srivastava’s cassetee ‘Hasna Mana Hai’

• Raju appeared in supporting roles in many Bollywood films including Maine Pyar Kiya (1989), Aamdani Atthani Kharcha Rupaiyaa (2001), Big Brother (2007), Barood : (The Fire) – A Love Story’ (2010), and Toilet: Ek Prem Katha (2017).
  

  Raju Srivastava in the film ‘Aamdani Atthani Kharcha Rupaiyaa’

• He participated in many comedy shows including The Great Indian Laughter Challenge (2005), Bigg Boss (2009), Comedy Ka Maha Muqabala (2011), and Nach Baliye (2013-2014).
  

  Raju Srivastava in the show Bigg Boss

• In an interview, he talked about his character Gajodhar Bhaiya and said that Gajodhar was his barber when Raju was a child.
  

  Raju Srivastava playing the character of Gajodhar Bhaiya

• He was given the title of King of Comedy on The Great Indian Laughter Challenge show in 2005.

• He appeared in about 500 episodes of Shaktimaan (TV Series). His role as Anthony Gonsalves in Journey Bombay to Goa: Laughter Unlimited became famous.

• In an interview, Raju revealed his love story with his wife Shikha and said that he waited for twelve years to get married to her. He met her in 1982 at his brother’s wedding in Fatehpur and fell in love at first sight. Although he decided to marry her, he couldn’t gather up the courage to confess his love to her. Later, he went to Mumbai to become a comedian. He struggled there for a few years and in the meanwhile, he used to send letters to Shikha to know if she got married to someone else or not. After a few years of hard work, he bought his own house in Mumbai and developed financially stability. Thereafter, he sent a marriage proposal to Shikha’s house and impressed her brothers after which their marriage was confirmed.

• In 2014, after he was nominated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to be a part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, he worked towards keeping the societies clean.
  

  Raju Srivastava with his wife cleaning the society

• In 2016, he appeared in a TV Commercial  for ‘PetSaffa.’

• In 2019, he presented the proposal of making a film city in Varanasi to the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath. He told him that if there was a film city in Varanasi, the young artists would not have to go to Mumbai and the place would also become a tourist attraction. After his proposal, he was allotted a 106-acre plot in Varanasi to make the film city.

• In August 2022, while exercising on the treadmill at the Cult gym in Delhi, he suffered a heart attack and was immediately rushed to AIIMS, Delhi. Later, he underwent angioplasty after which he was shifted to the Intensive Care Unit. According to media sources, on 12 August 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called Raju’s wife to take his health updates. ^[8]Hindustan Times

• After he was admitted to the hospital, many famous personalities talked to his wife, Shikha, to assure her help in Raju’s treatment. Some of these famous personalities that helped Raju during this difficult phase include Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

• On 18 August 2022, there were reports that Raju was brain dead, but his manager clarified the rumours and said,
  

  There is nothing like this. He is unconscious. There was swelling in his brain nerves. With some medicines, he was unable to respond. Then some injections were given which caused swelling in some of his brain nerves. Doctors are treating it.”

  However, on 21 September 2022, he died while undergoing treatment at AIIMS in New Delhi.

Comedian Raju Srivastava passes away in Delhi at the age of 58, confirms his family.

He was admitted to AIIMS Delhi on August 10 after experiencing chest pain & collapsing while working out at the gym.

(File Pic) pic.twitter.com/kJqPvOskb5

— ANI (@ANI) September 21, 2022