Johny Lever

Biography

Johnny Lever (born John Prakash Rao Janumala; 14 August 1957) is an Indian actor and popular comedian who is known for his works in Hindi cinema.

He is one of the first stand-up comedians in India. He is the recipient of numerous accolades, including thirteen Filmfare Awards nominations in Filmfare Award for Best Performance in a Comic Role, and has won the award twice, for his work in Deewana Mastana (1997) and Dulhe Raja (1998).

He began his career in 1984 and has acted in more than three hundred Hindi films.

Lever was born on 14 August 1957 in a Telugu Christian family in Prakasam, Andhra Pradesh. His father worked as an operator in Hindustan Unilever plant where he also worked as a labourer for six years.

Lever was brought up in the King's Circle area of Dharavi in Mumbai. His mother tongue is Telugu and is fluent in Hindi, English, Marathi, and Tulu.

He is the eldest in the family consisting of three sisters and two brothers (including his younger brother Jimmy Moses).

Lever studied at Andhra education society English high school until the seventh grade as he could not study further because of financial problems in his family.

As a result, he decided to leave school and started working odd jobs, such as selling pens on the streets of Mumbai by mimicking some famous Hindi film stars of that time and dancing to the songs of Hindi film stars.

He also spent his early years in Yakutpura, an old city of Hyderabad, where he learned the unique style of comedy acting.

During a Hindustan Unilever company function, he mimicked a few senior officers, and from that day on, the workers said he is Johnny Lever. When he later joined the film industry, he decided to use Johnny Lever as his screen name.