Think about comedy on primetime television, and Sunil Grover is among the first names that comes to mind. The actor and comedian has been been giving us family friendly laughs for over a decade now.
Born in Haryana, Grover completed his studies from Panjab University in Chandigarh. His comic talent was discovered in college by the late satirist Jaspal Bhatti, who encouraged him to pursue a career in showbiz.
Grover was first noticed on television when he parodied Shah Rukh Khan in the spoofs of the latter’s reality shows Kaun Banega Crorepati? (SRK hosted one season in 2007) and Kya Aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tez Hain?. Since then he has gone on to play various comic avatars on television. He is coming to Gurgaon and Bangalore with his live comedy show this April. Get ready for an evening of endless laughter.
Here’s a look at some of his most notable work.
‘Gutur Gu’
Gutur Gu is India’s first ever silent comedy show that ran for nearly 200 episodes on SAB TV between 2010 and 2014. The show revolved around Balu Kumar (Grover), who is constantly creating hilarious situations for his family.
Director: Prabal Baruah
Writer: Sunil Kumar Bahera
Cast: Sunil Grover, Sheetal Maulik, Nayan Bhatt, Bhavana Balsawar, Jaydutt Vyas
Streaming on: YouTube
‘Comedy Nights with Kapil’ and ‘The Kapil Sharma Show’
It was these popular sketch comedy shows that made Sunil Grover a household name. Grover appeared as various characters, the most popular of them being Gutthi and Dr. Mashoor Gulati. The eccentric yet lovable Gutthi was easily the most popular character on the shows. Grover has revealed that he drew inspiration for Gutthi from his real-life experiences with women in college.
Cast: Kapil Sharma, Sunil Grover, Navjot Singh Sidhu, Kiku Sharda
Streaming on: Comedy Nights with Kapil on Voot, MX Player and YouTube, The Kapil Sharma Show on SonyLIV and YouTube
‘Gabbar is Back’
Sunil Grover made his Bollywood debut in Pyaar Toh Hona Hi Tha (1998) and went on to do a string of small roles in numerous films. It was only in 2015 that he landed his first full-fledged role in the Akshay Kumar-starrer Gabbar is Back. He also broke out of his comedy mould with this film. His role of constable Sadhuram was appreciated by the audience.
Creators: AR Murgadoss, Rajat Arora
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Shruti Haasan, Kareena Kapoor, Sunil Grover
Streaming on: Netflix, Voot, Jio Cinema
‘Tandav’
Grover was seen in a never-seen-before avatar in his digital debut. He played Gurpal Chauhan, the scary, cold-blooded enforcer of a big-ticket politician. The series received mixed reviews but Grover’s performance was lauded. Read our review here.
Creator: Ali Abbas Zafar
Cast: Saif Ali Khan, Dimple Kapadia, Sunil Grover, Gauahar Khan
Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video
GURGAON
When: Saturday, April 3 at 7.30pm
Where: Airia Mall, Sector 68
BANGALORE
When: Saturday, April 17 at 7.30pm
Where: Phoenix Marketcity, Whitefield