2 hours agoAuthor: Virendra Mishra
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Paresh Rawal was inclined towards theater since childhood.
On hearing the name of Paresh Rawal, people remember Baburao’s comic timing, but his career was not limited to comedy only. At one time, people started getting scared of his dangerous villain characters even in real life. People used to shy away from sitting near him in flights and started hiding their things.
To break this image, he turned to comedy and became a cult star with characters like Baburao, Teja, Dr. Ghunghru. Recently he admitted that in anger he had once broken a person’s head with a stone, which he regrets today. He was always in the news for his outspoken style in theatre, films and politics.
Today Paresh Rawal is celebrating his 71st birthday. Know some special things related to his career and life.
Not just a comedian, he is a master of every character.
Some actors in Indian cinema leave their characters forever in people’s memories. Paresh Rawal is included among those actors. He proved himself in comedy, villain, serious characters, social films and historical roles.
Characters like Baburao, Teja, Dr. Ghunghroo, Kanji Mehta and Tikku are still on people’s lips. Paresh Rawal used to prepare separately for each character and change his body language, voice and expression accordingly.
Fake father slaps in principal’s cabin
Paresh Rawal’s acting journey started from theatre. He became fond of dramas during his college days. He often skipped classes and spent time in theater rehearsals and the canteen. When the attendance was less, the principal asked them to call the parents.
Then he took an elderly friend of his area to college as a fake father. As soon as he heard the complaint, the friend acted and slapped him hard. The principal got nervous and said, “Don’t kill, the boy is very good, wins trophies for the college.”
Beat up a person in anger
Paresh Rawal was also known for his anger during his theater days. In Raj Shamni’s podcast, he told that during a play, a person sitting in the audience was continuously making vulgar comments. In anger, he came down from the stage and beat that person.
There was an uproar in the theater and the show had to be stopped. The theater owners were so angered that they refused to allow anyone to perform there in the future.
In the same interview, he admitted that once in anger he had thrown a stone on someone’s head. Later he repented and made peace with that person.
People started getting scared of the villain’s image
In the 90s, Paresh Rawal played such dangerous villain roles in films like ‘Ram Lakhan’, ‘Kabja’ and ‘Mohra’ that people started fearing him in real life too. Due to his eye expressions, heavy voice and screen presence, the audience started considering him scary.
People were afraid to sit near him in flights and public places and started hiding their things. To break this image, he later turned to comedy characters.
Paresh Rawal played the role of underworld don Veljibhai Patekar in the film ‘Sir’. This is counted among the most powerful negative roles of his early career. He received the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor for this film.
Paresh Rawal played the role of Mama Thakur in Dilwale. His cruel and merciless style in this role was quite scary to the audience. His eye expressions and dialogue delivery became the biggest strengths of this character.
Met a real eunuch to prepare for the role
In the film ‘Tamanna’, Paresh Rawal played the character of a eunuch, which is counted among the most sensitive roles of his career. To prepare for this role, he met real eunuchs. He closely understood their body language, way of speaking and emotions. Later he said that this character had shaken him to the core.
Playing the character of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was the most difficult.
In the film Sardar, he played the role of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the Iron Man of India. For this role, he worked deeply on the speech, movements and body language of Sardar Patel.
He had said in many interviews that playing a historical character is the most difficult because people already know the personality and catch small mistakes.
Paresh Rawal in ‘Andaz Apna Apna’.
Memes became a part of the culture, and sometimes the character became a noose around the neck.
In the 1994 film ‘Andaz Apna Apna’, Paresh Rawal played the double role of simpleton Ram Gopal Bajaj and cunning villain Teja. Dialogues like “Teja main hoon, mark idhar hai” later became a part of meme culture.
Baburao of Hera Pheri is considered to be the most iconic character of Paresh Rawal’s career. Thick glasses, dhoti-kurta, broken Hindi and excellent comic timing made this character a cult. To make Baburao look like a common man, Paresh Rawal used Charlie Chaplin and R.K. Took inspiration from Laxman the common man.
The famous scene of the film, in which Baburao advises the paying guest, “Toilet ka darwaza toota hai, andar jao toh gaana gaya karo”, was actually an on-the-spot improvisation by Paresh Rawal.
However, the popularity of this character increased so much that Paresh Rawal later said that Baburao became a “noose around the neck” for him, because people started seeing him in similar roles.
From Dr. Ghunghroo to Mastan Bhai, Paresh Rawal’s iconic roles
In Hungama, Paresh Rawal played the character of a rich, suspicious and confused businessman. The comedy born out of misunderstandings and suspicions was greatly appreciated by the audience. His expression and dialogue delivery are still considered the biggest strengths of the film.
His gangster-comedy avatar in Awara Pagal Deewana was well-liked. In the character of Mastan Bhai, he showed a great blend of gangster style and comic timing. Whereas in Welcome, he played the role of Dr. Ghunghroo, a scared but greedy doctor. His comic timing became one of the film’s greatest strengths.
Effective acting in serious and social films
In ‘Omji- Oh My God’, Paresh Rawal played the role of atheist shopkeeper Kanji Lalji Mehta, who takes the business running in the name of religion to the court. In this role he adopted theater style acting. Simplicity, sarcasm and depth were visible in his dialogues.
He had said that after this film, he started getting different types of roles and his image was not limited to just comedian. However, there were controversies regarding the film. Director Umesh Shukla had told that he had received death threats during the release.
Monologue of ‘Table No. 21’ surprised, strategic style shown in ‘Uri’
In the film ‘Table Number 21’, Paresh Rawal played the role of a mysterious and dangerous person. He effectively showed the anger and pain hidden behind the calm face. His climax monologue of the film became quite popular and is counted among his most underrated roles on social media.
Whereas, in Uri: The Surgical Strike, he played a character inspired by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. The audience liked his calm but strategic style in the film.
More focused on statements than films
Paresh Rawal, along with his strong acting and memorable characters, was also in the headlines for his controversial statements many times. Many of his statements in politics, religion, social issues and election speeches caused controversy on social media. In many cases he faced criticism, legal complaints and trolling.
The biggest controversy was regarding his statement about Bengalis in 2022. He was trolled on social media, political parties protested and a complaint was filed in Kolkata. In many media reports, this was described as the biggest public controversy of his career.
Comment on Bengalis: The most controversial statement
According to the report of Times of India, during the Gujarat election campaign in 2022, Paresh Rawal, while speaking on the issue of price rise, gas cylinders and illegal immigration, had commented about Bengalis, Rohingyas and Bangladeshis.
He had said, “Gas cylinders are expensive, but what will you do if Rohingyas and Bangladeshis live in your neighborhood? Will Bengalis cook fish for you?” The video of this statement went viral on social media.
After this statement, the Bengali community and opposition leaders reacted sharply. CPI(M) leader Mohammed Saleem filed a complaint against him in Kolkata. It was alleged that his statement could disturb social harmony.
After the controversy escalated, Paresh Rawal clarified on Twitter that he was referring to “illegal Bangladeshi and Rohingya infiltrators” and not the entire Bengali community. He wrote that if anyone’s sentiments have been hurt, he apologizes.
Tweet on Arundhati Roy creates uproar
In 2017, his tweet regarding writer Arundhati Roy also remained in controversy. There was a debate going on across the country on the incident of the army tying a young man to a jeep in Kashmir. Meanwhile, Paresh Rawal had tweeted that “Instead of the stone pelter, tie Arundhati Roy to the jeep.”
There was huge protest on social media after this tweet. Many journalists, activists and people associated with the film industry called it a statement promoting violence. Campaigns started against him on Twitter. Paresh Rawal later said that his tweet was sarcastic and was misrepresented.
Controversy over statements related to religion and history
Paresh Rawal has been in controversies many times on issues related to religion and history. In 2017, during the ongoing political debate over Taj Mahal, he had tweeted that those who think “Taj Mahal is not a part of Indian culture” should understand that history cannot be seen only through politics.
Later, during the promotion of his film ‘The Taj Story’, he said that he was against “hollow controversies” and the aim of the film was not to increase Hindu-Muslim tension.
Some PILs were also filed regarding the film. Allegations were made that the film might affect religious sentiments. On this, Paresh Rawal clarified that the purpose of the film is to show one side of history, and not to create communal controversy.
Paresh Rawal was an MP from 2014 to 2019.
Criticism increased after coming into politics
After joining Bharatiya Janata Party and becoming MP from Ahmedabad East seat, more political reactions started coming on the statements of Paresh Rawal. His tweets and public comments often became part of TV debates and social media debates.
Supporters described him as an actor with an outspoken and nationalist image, while critics said that being a senior actor and former MP, he should make statements more responsibly.
Trolling and criticism on social media
Paresh Rawal remained active on Twitter for a long time. His tweets on religion, nationalism, elections and social issues often went viral. Many times there were trends in his support, and many times he had to face trolling and criticism.
However, in some cases he clarified and even apologized. Especially after the Bengali controversy, he had publicly said that his intention was not to insult any community.
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