Johnny Lever
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 | This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. (April 2012) |
| Johnny Lever | |
|---|---|
 Johnny Lever in 2011 | |
| Born | John Prakasa Rao Janumala 14 August 1957 Prakasam, Andhra Pradesh, India |
| Occupation | Actor, Comedian |
| Years active | 1984–present |
| Spouse(s) | Sujatha Lever |
| Signature |  |
John Prakasa Rao Janumala (born 14 August 1957, in Prakasam), better known as Johnny Lever, is an Indian film actor and one of the most popular comedians in Hindi cinema.[1]
Johnny has received 13 Filmfare Awards nominations in Best Comedian Category, and has won the award twice. He began his career in 1984, and has acted in more than 300 Bollywood films since.
Early life [edit]
| This section may contain original research. (April 2013) |
Lever was born to Prakash Rao Janumala and Karunamma Janumala in Prakasam, Andhra Pradesh, India. He was brought up in Mumbai's King's Circle area (Dharavi). His mother tongue isTelugu.[2] Johnny studied in Andhra Telugu School till the seventh grade but couldn't study further because of financial problems in his family, after which he decided to leave school and started working different kinds of odd jobs, such as selling pens on the streets of Bombay by imitating Bollywood stars and dancing to the songs of Bollywood stars. He also spent his early ages inYakutpura a old city of Hyderabad from where he learnt the unique style of comedy acting. He developed a passion for mimicry and stand-up comedy, inspired by watching comedians like Johnny Walker, Kishore Kumar and Mehmood in films and mimicry artists like Dinesh Hingoo and Nerella Venumadhav on stage, and thus decided to be a mimicry artist. To seek guidance and help regarding mimicry, he met his mentor Pratap Jani and mimicry artist Ram Kumar, who helped him and taught him the basics of mimicry.
Lever was also employed in Hindustan Lever's factory in Mumbai with his father. While working, he entertained his co-workers in the factory by imitating Elvis Presley. At one of the functions at his factory he was asked to perform and show his talent. His popularity among coworkers and officers of the factory by his performance earned him the nickname "Johnny Lever".
He started to perform in musical shows (orchestras) Tabassum Hit Parade and after earning fame, joined the group of Kalyanji-Anandji, a legendary music direction duo. He did a lot of shows and world tours with them, one of his first big tours being with Amitabh Bachchan in 1982.
During this period he learned a lot from his mentor Kalyanji, who was described by Lever as a great philosopher and a very humorous person. At one of his shows, actor Sunil Dutt noticed his talent and potential and offered him his first movie Dard Ka Rishta.
In the 1980s, he released his mimicry/comedy album, Hansee Ke Hungame, which became a hit in India and the world over, increasing his fame to another level. During this time period, he also did few commercials for Kachua chhap incense, directed by Shekhar Kapoor.
In 1986, he performed in a charity show called "Hope 86", in front of the whole Hindi film industry as a filler and was loved by audience. His talent was recognised, which resulted in producer Gul Anand offering him a film called Jalwa with Naseeruddin Shah. He is considered an influential Indian comedian who has been cited as inspiration by many other comics.
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