Johny Lever

Born on August 14, 1957, as John Prakash Rao Janumala, Johnny Lever is an Indian actor and well-known comedian most recognised for his roles in Hindi films. He was among India's earliest stand-up comedians. He has received several honours, including thirteen nominations for the Filmfare Award for Best Performance in a Comedy Role. He has also won the award twice, for his roles in Dulhe Raja (1998) and Deewana Mastana (1997). He started his acting career in 1984 and has appeared in over 300 Hindi films.

Early career

Lever was born in Prakasam, Andhra Pradesh, on August 14, 1957, into a Telugu Christian family. In addition to working as a labour for six years, his father was an operator at the Hindustan Unilever factory. Lever grew up in Mumbai's Dharavi neighbourhood around King's Circle. He speaks Bengali, Hindi, English, Marathi, and Tulu fluently in addition to his home tongue of Telugu. With three sisters and two brothers, including his younger brother Jimmy Moses, he is the oldest member of the family.

Due to financial difficulties in his family, Lever was only able to complete the seventh grade of English high school at Andhra Education Society. He thus made the decision to drop out of school and began performing odd jobs, including imitating some of the most well-known Hindi movie stars of the day and dancing to their songs while selling pens on the streets of Mumbai. He also spent his formative years in Hyderabad's ancient city of Yakutpura, where he picked up the art of comedic acting.

He imitated a few top executives at a Hindustan Unilever business function, and the employees started calling him Johnny Lever after that. Upon entering the film industry, he chose to go by Johnny Lever on screen.

Stand up career

He began doing stand-up comedy in musical productions (orchestras), such as Tabassum Hit Parade. After becoming well-known, he joined the music directing combo Kalyanji-Anandji. Lever is recognised as one of the pioneers of the Indian stand-up comedy scene and one of the country's earliest stand-up comedians. He began performing on stage even before he joined Hindustan Unilever (HUL). In 1981, he left HUL due to his increasing absenteeism and the fact that he was making a good living from theatre acts. He performed with them in several concerts and globe tours; in 1982, he went on one of his first major world tours alongside Amitabh Bachchan. Actor Sunil Dutt offered him his debut film, Dard Ka Rishta, after observing him during one of his performances and realising his talent and potential.

He made a comedy tape titled Hasi Ke Hangame, which helped people recognise him when they listened to it at home. He also performed in a few Shekhar Kapur-directed advertisements for Kachua Chhap Incense around this time. He filled in as a filler for members of the Hindi film industry in the 1986 charity programme Hope 86. Producer Gul Anand offered him the role of Naseeruddin Shah in the movie Jalwa after realising his ability.

Film career

1980s

Thanks to Baby Tabassum and the late Sunil Dutt, Lever received his first break in Tum Par Hum Qurban, where she introduced her son Hoshang Govil as the lead role. He then gained another success in the movie Dard Ka Rishta. He has since appeared in over 350 films, including Tezaab, Kasam, Khatarnak, and Kishen Kanhaiya. He was spotted with Naseeruddin Shah in Jalwa, Hero Hiralal, following Dard Ka Rishta.

1990s

Following his first significant hit with Baazigar, he appeared in films as a comic and supporting actor. He kept performing live even though he was engaged with movie assignments. His 1999 Filmfare Awards imitation of Michael Jackson stands out among his most memorable live performances. The role of "Babulal" in the Abbas-directed film Baazigar was his most well-known performance. In addition, he is well-known for portraying other well-known figures, such as "Chotta Chattri" and "Aslam Bhai."

Television career

In a 1993 episode of the comedy Zabaan Sambhalke, Lever made his television debut as Johnny Utolandand. Lever also had an appearance on his own show, Johny Aala Re, on Zed TV. He served as a judge on Comedy Circus, a stand-up reality show, in 2007. Lever, in the role of Commissioner Googol Chatterjee, joined the Partners cast in 2017.

He has performed hundreds of live performances worldwide and currently serves as president of the Mumbai-based Mimicry Artist Association (MAAM).