'Peacemaker' Raju Srivastav to be part of 'The Kapil Sharma Show'

Days after confirming to mid-day that he plans to play mediator between top comedians Kapil Sharma and Sunil Grover following last week's infamous mid-air brawl that led to Sunil staying away from the set of The Kapil Sharma Show, stand-up Raju Srivastav might just take Sunil's place. Sunil was sorely missed when Naam Shabana's cast Taapsee Pannu and Manoj Bajpayee arrived on set to promote their film over the weekend.

Confirming the developments, Raju tells mid-day, "Talks are on, but things are yet to be finalised. I don't want to rush into it, but it's a great opportunity. Sharing the stage with Kapil is always fun."

Kapil's fallout with 'good friend' Sunil (Dr Mashoor Gulati; Rinku Bhabhi), along with other cast members, including childhood buddy Chandan Prabhakar (house help Raju) and Ali Azgar (Dadi), after his apparent misbehaviour in an inebriated state on a flight from Melbourne to Mumbai, caused the three to stay away from shooting. Last evening Raju, along with a new set of comedians, including Ahsaan Qureshi and Sunil Pal, were called in to up the humour quotient, but despite their earnest efforts, they failed to match the energy of the original cast.

Kapil Sharma

Raju's jokes reminded viewers of his popular stint on The Great Indian Laughter Challenge (2005), but seemed tired, while Ahsaan's poetic renditions failed to tickle too many. Pal's recreation of his character, Ratan Noora, which earned him the title of the 2005 show, also seemed tired. Kapil's reiteration of the importance of laughter, and the trio's vocal love for the 'great' host, seemed like a forceful but futile assertion that the show could go on, despite the boycott.

Sunil Grover

It was earlier reported that this bunch would feature on a single episode of the sketch comedy show, however, given the current situation, producers are finalising Raju for forthcoming episodes too. While Ahsaan hasn't been formally approached, he says, "I had a good time on the show. It was like a mini reunion. I am a comedian and like to make people laugh. I just need a stage to do that. If they call me, I will surely go back."

Talking about playing peacemaker between Kapil and Sunil, Raju adds, "I was hopeful of bringing them together last week, but Sunil is out of town. I am waiting for him to return."