7 LOL scenes featuring Satish Kaushik – Birthday special

He is a heavyweight now, but even when he was a slimmer young man, Satish Kaushik always chipped in with heavyweight performances in supporting roles.

Kaushik began his career in films assisting director Shekhar Kapur on Masoom (1983). He also had a small role in the film.

Kaushik then wrote the dialogues for Kundan Shah’s cult comic caper Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro (1983). He went on to direct a few films himself, most of which failed.

A man who has worn many hats in his long career, Kaushik is, however, best remembered for his goofy roles on screen. As the actor/filmmaker turns 61 today (13 April), we look back at some of the most hilarious scenes he has performed.

1. The filmy cop – Jalwa (1987)

A police officer by profession but a movie buff at heart, Ramu (Satish Kaushik) can’t help but talk about cinema even during working hours. This scene from Jalwa featuring Amitabh Bachchan in a special appearance proves why Ramu wasn’t faking.

2. Dial Albert for trouble – Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro (1983)

A classic comic caper, Kundan Shah’s Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron ranks amongst the finest satires in Hindi cinema. Kaushik played Ashok, the rather dim-witted aide of devious businessman Tarneja (Pankaj Kapoor). This sequence has business rivals Tarneja and Ahuja (Om Puri) hoping to strike a deal but their efforts are thwarted by investigative journalists Vinod (Naseeruddin Shah) and Sudhir (Ravi Baswani). All it takes is to dial 'Albert Pinto'.

3. Pappu Pager – Deewana Mastana (1997)

A classic from the David Dhawan school of humour, Deewana Mastana was a comedy cherished more by the masses than the classes. Kaushik was cast as Pappu Pager, a punning (but not cunning) goon who communicates in bizarre rhyming text. He is big, talks big, but it is all to no avail as each time the threatening puns boomerang on him.

4. A bachelor’s woes – Rajaji (1999)

Ironically, for a guy named Shaadilal, Satish Kaushik’s character is a big, old bachelor. But that hasn’t deterred him from following his heart. Like his nephew Rajaji (Govinda), he, too, longs to woo a rich young woman. Unfortunately, his attempt to woo one such with an aphrodisiac cake from a babaji (Laxmikant Berde) goes horribly wrong.

5. Dreaded depths of debts – Hum Aapke Dil Mein Rehte Hain (1999)

After the dud Prem (1995), Satish Kaushik returned to direction after four years with Hum Aapke Dil Mein Rehte Hain, a remake of the Telugu film Pavithra Bandham (1996). Kaushik, Johnny Lever and Rakesh Bedi provided the humour quotient in the film. German (Kaushik) had taken a loan from Salim (Bedi) to give Sunny (Lever) a loan. Sunny turns out to be a wilful defaulter who keeps snubbing poor German with his tricks.

6. Batabhai ka pravachan – Double Dhamaal (2011)

Kaushik rediscovered the Pappu Pager in him in the 2011 comic caper Double Dhamaal. Batabhai (Kaushik) looks to redeem himself as a godman who delivers pravachan (religious discourse). Unfortunately, old habits die hard and this attempt at redemption turns into a comical farce.

7. Bathing in accountability – Dekh Tamasha Dekh (2014)

The only film in which Satish Kaushik was cast in the lead role, something that happened when the actor-filmmaker was close to 60. Dekh Tamasha Dekh was a satire in which the unintentional comedy caused by the amnesia of Muthaseth (Kaushik) leaves you in splits. Out here the big burly politician is having a Multani mitti bath while trying to hold his newspaper's editor accountable. More than the dialogues, the visuals will amuse you.