Bollywood comedian legends we miss seeing onscreen

There was a phase in Bollywood when no movie would ever be complete without the comedians. Almost every film had a comedian to provide some relief whenever the story-telling went flat. But as Indian cinema developed, it started to churn out plots, situations and characters closer to real life with the change in the treatment of its protagonists. The Bollywood hero was no longer conventional and did everything all by himself whether it was serious acting, action or comedy, and one can say that it was from the late 90s when the comedians took a backseat. Further, with the advent of mainstream actors like Govinda and Anil Kapoor, who had perfect comic timing, the comedians relegated into the background. We take this opportunity to remember some of the comedian legends who made us laugh out loud with their phenomenal comic timing and performances.

Johnny Lever 

He is one of the most popular comedians in Bollywood. In the 1980s, Johnny released his mimicry/comedy album, ‘Hansee Ke Hungame’, which became a hit in India and the world over, increasing his fame to another level. His first major success came with ‘Baazigar’, and after that he was seen in almost every movie as a supporting actor/comedian. He is also remembered for some of his other famous characters, like "Chotta Chattri", "Aslam Bhai", etc. His performance in the film, ‘Judaai’ and his famous dialogue in the movie, “Abba Dabba Jabba” are also unforgettable. We are eagerly waiting to see him in ‘Housefull 3’.

Paresh Rawal 

When it comes to Paresh Rawal, the first thing we remember is his character Baburao Ganpatrao Apte in the fim ‘Hera Pheri’ for which he received the Filmfare Best Comedian Award. He ventured into comedy, with hits like Andaz Apna Apna (1994), Chachi 420 (1997), Hera Pheri (2000), Nayak (2001), Aankhen (2002), Awara Paagal Deewana (2002), Hungama (2003), Hulchul (2004), Deewane Huye Paagal (2005), Garam Masala and in recent times we saw him in ‘Welcome Back’.

Kader Khan 

Remember the awesome chemistry between Govinda and Kader Khan in ‘Hero No. 1’, ‘Dulhe Raja’, ‘Saajan Chale Sasural’ and many more. The duo gave us many LOL moments in the film. Kader Khan also won the Filmfare Best Comedian Award for ‘Baap Numbri Beta Dus Numbri’ and was part of notable comic sequences in films like ‘Himmatwala’, ‘Coolie No. 1’, Bade Miyan Chhote Miya amongst many others.

Satish Kaushik

Well, gladly we get to see him daily on our television in ‘Sumit Sambhal Lega’, where Satish Kaushik plays a foodaholic father-in-law. But Satish Kaushik is still remembered as our Calendar in Mr. India. He is also remembered for his character of "Pappu Pager" in the comedy Deewana Mastana (1997), directed by his friend David Dhawan.

Tiku Talsania 

Tiku started his Bollywood career with Rajeev Mehra's, ‘Pyaar Ke Do Pal’ in 1986. He continued to play a comedian in movies like ‘Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahin’, ‘Umar 55 ka Dil Bachpan Ka’, ‘Bol Radha Bol’, ‘Andaz Apna Apna’, ‘Mr. Bechara’ from 1991 to 1996. Currently, he is seen on television in a comedy-horror show, ‘Pritam Pyare Aur Woh’, in which he plays the role of a short-tempered miserly businessman and a henpecked husband.

Asrani 

Asrani has immortalized himself by playing the role of a jailor in the iconic ‘Sholay’. His dialogue, “Hum angrezon ke zamaane ke jailor hai” is still mouthed and enacted by several comedians. Asrani holds record for appearing as a character actor/comedian in most number of Hindi films. He was seen in 101 films in the 70’s and in 107 films in the 80’s. He was an integral part of comedies made by Sajid Nadiadwala and Priyadarshan after 2000.

Rakesh Bedi

Rakesh Bedi is known for his comedy roles in films like Chashme Buddoor (1981), and television series, Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi (1984) and Shrimaan Shrimati (1995) and Yes Boss (1999–2009). Rakesh Bedi is a name that one immediately connects to a great sense of comic timing.

Jagdeep 

He is best known for his Soorma Bhopali role in ‘Sholay’. It was Bimal Roy's ‘Do Bigha Zamin’ with which he started playing comic roles. Then he played the comic character 'Machchar' in 'Purana Mandir' (1984). In 'Andaz Apna Apna', the legendary comedian played Salman Khan's father Bankelal Bihari; he was tailor by day and destroyer of his son's Bollywood dreams by night.