The death of comedian Raju Srivastava has left a void in the hearts of his fans and family members. He suffered a heart attack in August 2022 and died after some time of treatment. Raju was declared ‘brain dead’ and was on a ventilator for days before his death at the hospital in September. His family and close friends performed his last rites in Mumbai. Raju Srivastava’s daughter Antara recently revealed that when she first heard about the comedian’s heart attack, she thought it was some hoax. Antara told TOI that she thought her uncle had suffered a heart attack.
Antara told TOI, “I thought my chachu (uncle) had a heart attack on August 10, 2022, when my mother called me with this information. I thought there was something wrong. The name is Kaju and in fact, when my father had a heart attack, he was admitted to AIIMS in Delhi (due to accumulation of fluid in his brain). In fact, my father made a lot of arrangements for his stay. In fact, my uncle was going to be operated on the same day. And, my father kept coming in and out of the hospital, taking care of him – and I thought the news of my father’s heart attack was a rumour.
Antara also revealed that when Raju Srivastava was in the hospital, the superstar of Bollywood Amitabh Bachchan Stay in constant touch and inquire about his health. Antara revealed, “Let me tell you that there is one man who used to inquire about my dad’s health every day when he was admitted in the hospital. And he is Amitabh Bachchan. Followed the ideal and became who he was. Mr. Bachchan. All this gave us a lot of strength.’
Raju Srivastava’s daughter also recalled her last conversation with him and said that the comedian had celebrated his birthday with her. She said that Raju jokes to her that he broke down a few days back while shooting for Laughter Champions and left on tour soon after his birthday. He said, “Life never tells you it’s going to be the last time. He was out of town for the last 10 days. He shot for Laughter Champion a day after my birthday. We celebrated my birthday and he Shared. He used to tell different kinds of jokes there. A few days after that, he moved out. He used to go for tours often.
Comedian Raju Srivastava is survived by wife Shikha, daughter Antara and son Ayushmann. While Antara plans to become a director or producer in showbiz, Ayushmann is taking sitar lessons from Pandit Neeladri Kumar. He performs with Kailash Kher’s band.
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