Raju Srivastava often credited as Gajodhar, was an Indian comedian, actor and politician. He ventured into stand-up comedy with the talent show The Great Indian Laughter Challenge and finished as second runner-up, subsequently taking part in the spin-off, The Great Indian Laughter Challenge – Champions, in which he won the title of “The King of Comedy”. Srivastav also participated in Bigg Boss (Hindi season 3), the Indian counterpart of the Big Brother (franchise). On 4 December 2009, after staying in the house for more than two months he was voted out. He later participated in the comedy show Comedy Ka Maha Muqabala. Alongside his wife, Raju participated in the 6th season of the Hindi-language celebrity dance reality television series Nach Baliye.
Birth Name
Satya Prakash Srivastava
Nickname
Gajodhar, Raju Bhaiya
Profession
Comedian, Actor, Television Personality, Politician, Dancer
Genre
Observational Comedy
Medium
Hindi
Nationality
Indian
Personal Life
Birthday / Date of Birth
Raju Srivastav was born on the 25th of December 1963, in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh.
Died
He was died on the 21th of September 2022 (at the age of 58), in New Delhi, India After suffering a heart attack he was still under treatment at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).
Sun Sign
Capricorn
Ethnicity
Asian
He has Indian ancestry.
Religion
Hinduism
Education
His educational qualifications are unknown.
Family Details
- Father – Ramesh Chandra Srivastava (also known as Balai Kaka) (Poet, Government Employee)
- Mother – Saraswati Srivastava
- Siblings – Deepu Srivastava (Younger Brother) (Actor), Sudha Srivastava (Sister)
Marital Status
Married
Girlfriend / Spouse
Raju Srivastav has dated –
- Shikha Srivastava (1993-Present) – In 1993, Raju got married to Shikha Srivastava. The duo have 2 children a daughter named Antara and a son named Ayushman. They remained together until his death.
Physical Statistics
Height
- In feet – 5 feet 6 inches
- In centimeters – 167 cm
- In meters – 1.67 m
Weight
- In Kilograms – 65 kg
- In Pounds – 144 lbs
Body Build
Average
Eye Color
Dark Brown
Hair Color
Black
Shoe Size
He wears a size 8.5 (US) shoe
Sexuality
Straight
Professional Statistics
Famous For
Raju became known as a comedian, actor, television personality, dancer, and politician who appeared as a contestant in the reality stand-up comedy series The Great Indian Laughter Challenge and wrapped up his journey on the show as the 2nd runner-up. He then participated in the show’s spinoff The Great Indian Laughter Challenge – Champions and won the title of The King of Comedy.
Film Debut
In 1988, Srivastava had his first film onscreen role in the movie Tezaab with Anil Kapoor.
Television Debut
In 1988, Raju landed his first role in television by appearing in a small role in the series, Tezaab.
Political Career
The Samajwadi Party (SP) fielded Srivastava from Kanpur Lok Sabha constituency for the 2014 Lok Sabha election. But on 11 March 2014, Srivastav returned the ticket, saying he was not getting enough support from the local units of the party. SP was expecting him to quit as the contest in the seat had become important. SP withdrew his candidature from Kanpur after he quit.
On 19 March 2014, Within days of leaving SP, he joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). BJP did not give him the ticket for Lok Sabha 2014. He campaigned in support of BJP candidates in Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. In 2014, he was appointed by the BJP led Union government as the brand ambassador of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan and had recorded advertisements for the campaign.
In 2018, Srivastav disclosed on social media that he would get the chance to contest in the 2019 Indian general election as BJP candidate for Lok Sabha, although that did not materialize. In March 2019, he was appointed by the BJP-led Government of Uttar Pradesh as the chairman of the Uttar Pradesh Film Development Council.
Brand Endorsements
Srivastava has done endorsement work for several brands such as Swacha Bharat Abhiyaan.
Raju Srivastava Net worth
Raju Srivastava has an estimated net worth of $1.5 million dollars as of 2023.
Social Media Profiles
- Instagram – Raju Srivastava
- Twitter – Raju Srivastava
Some Lesser Known Facts About Raju Srivastava
- Raju was born as Satya Prakash Srivastava in Kanpur city in the state of Uttar Pradesh in a Kayastha family.
- In his childhood, Srivastav liked to mimic film stars including Amitabh Bachchan. In 1980s he moved to Mumbai, and started his career by doing small roles in Bollywood films.
- He had a part in the Rajshri Productions movie Maine Pyar Kiya and other small roles in various movies such as Baazigar and Bombay to Goa.
- Raju worked as an actor and comedian in the Bollywood movie Aamdani Atthanni Kharcha Rupaiya.
- In 2005, ventured into stand-up comedy with the talent show The Great Indian Laughter Challenge and finished as second runner-up. Then he took part in its spin-off, The Great Indian Laughter Challenge – Champions, and won the title of “The King of Comedy”.
- He became famous with this show. By 2009, he had done more than 2,800 live shows.
- In 2010, Srivastav received threatening calls from Pakistan warning him not to crack jokes on underworld don Dawood Ibrahim and Pakistan during his shows.
- Raju made his showbiz debut with Anil Kapoor’s movie Tezaab. He is quite popular for his fictional character name Gajodhar a funny character created by him.
- The comedian has also acted in popular TV shows like Adaalat and Shaktimaan.
- In January 2021, Srivastav released a small video clip on social media criticizing the creators and actors of the web series Tandav for allegedly hurting Hindu sentiments by insulting Hindu religion and Hindu deities.
