New Delhi: Popular comedian and actor Raju Srivastava was on Thursday cremated in the presence of family and close friends at Nigambodh Ghat here.
The 58-year-old comedian, one of the most well-known names in the comedy and film circles, passed away on Wednesday morning at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) after 41 days in hospital. He was admitted to AIIMS following a heart attack while working out at a Delhi hotel gym on 10 August.
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Raju's mortal remains were taken to his residence in the South West Delhi locality Dwarka, after they were handed over to the family yesterday. An ambulance decked up with white flowers left for the Nigambodh Ghat crematorium where Srivastava's son Ayushmaan performed the last rites.
"We left from the house in Dwarka at about 9 am for the funeral. Our family members from Kanpur and Lucknow are here," he added. Industry colleagues Sunil Pal and Ahsaan Qureshi, director Madhur Bhandarkar and singer Ram Shankar along with hundreds of fans also reached there to pay last respects to the comedian.
Born in 1963 in Kanpur to Ramesh Srivastava, a government employee and a humour poet, and homemaker mother Saraswati, Srivastava was first noticed for his resemblance to megastar Amitabh Bachchan and later became popular for his observational stand-up sketches in and around his hometown.
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The comic, whose career spanned almost four decades, played nameless bit parts in hit Hindi films such as "Maine Pyaar Kiya" and "Baazigar" before gaining nationwide fame as a participant in the 2005 reality comedy competition show "The Great Indian Laughter Challenge". (PTI)
