“Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more: it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.”
― William Shakespeare, Macbeth
This quote of the Bard of Avon, William Shakespeare, is apt to comedian Raju Srivastava who passed away at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi on Wednesday. To his fans, it seemed he has just gone to the green room and will soon return to leave his fans in splits, but it won’t happen any longer. He has left the stage for ever leaving his fans in tears.
Fifty-eight-year-old Raju was admitted to AIIMS after he had a cardiac arrest on August 10 when he was working out at a gym in South Delhi. As he began to feel uneasy, he was rushed to AIIMS where he underwent angioplasty. He was kept on a ventilator. He had been battling for life for 41 days. The comedian’s health fluctuated several times. On August 25, there were reports that Raju was coming around.
His brother Dipoo Srivastava, however, said that the family had no such information. His wife Sikha continued to update his health and appealed to his fans to pray for his recovery.
Known as stage character “Gajodhar,” Raju was born on December 25, 1963 in Kanpur district of Uttar Pradesh. His father, Ramesh Chandra Srivastava, was a poet. He did mimicry in his childhood and cut a swath for himself in the world of comedy because of his jokes and comic roles he played. Most of his puns and wits were related to the realistic world.
Raju rose earned fame from the comedy talent hunt show “The Great Indian Laughter Challenge” in 2005. He worked in Bollywood hits like “Maine Pyar Kiya,” “Baaazigar,” “Bombay to Goa” (remake) and “Aamdani Atthani Kharcha Rupaiya.” He was chairman of the Uttar Pradesh Film Development Council. He was married to Shikha in 1993 with two children Antara and Ayushman.
His earthly journey came to an end at 10:20am. His fans stood stil,l remembering the bard: Everyone can master a grief but he that has it…
