Saurabh Shukla


Saurabh Shukla is an Indian film, theatre and television actor and director. He is famous for his roles in Satya, Yuva, Barfi!, Jolly LLB, Kick, PK, Jolly LLB 2 and Raid. He has also worked in a short documentary with Ruth Agnihotri and Rachael Agnihotri in Goa.
In 2014, he won the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Jolly LLB.

Early life

Born to Jogamaya Shukla, who was the first female tabla player of India and Shatrughan Shukla, a vocalist from Agra Gharana, Shukla's family left Gorakhpur for Delhi when he was two years old. He completed his schooling and did graduation from Khalsa College, Delhi. His professional career began in 1984 with entry into the theatre.

Career

Shukla began serious theatre in 1986 with roles in plays like A View From The Bridge, Look Back in Anger, Ghashiram Kotwal and Hayvadan. In 1991, he joined the NSD Repertoire Company – the professional wing of the National School of Drama – as actor. The next year he got his first break when Shekhar Kapur, impressed with his work, created a role for him in Bandit Queen.
Shukla also did the role of Vijay Anand's sidekick Gopi in the 1994 Doordarshan crime drama Tehkikaat. The series was directed by Karan Razdan, but Kapur directed the first episode. He also wrote and acted in Zee TV's 9 Malabar Hill.
He also appeared in a recurring albeit a short role of an aamir's jasoos in the 1990s Doordarshan TV serial Mulla Nasiruddin, which had Raghubir Yadav in the lead role. The series was based on the folklore of Mulla Nasiruddin.
Shukla is also a part of a comic theater play 2 to Tango, 3 to Jive.

Breakthrough (1998–present)

Shukla's biggest break came when he co-wrote the script for Ram Gopal Varma's 1998 cult classic Satya and played the role of gangster Kallu Mama in the film. He won the Star Screen Award for Best Screenplay alongside Anurag Kashyap.
"Why do I make realistic films, like Satya? Because that's the kind of films I like to do. Capturing reality is very difficult and challenging," he said in a 2000 interview to Rediff.com, making it clear that he prefers realism in his scripts. In the same interview he also talked about his preferred genre of film making – comedy:
In 2003, he wrote the screenplay for Calcutta Mail. He received his first award for this film, the Zee Cine Award for Best Screenplay. In 2008, he acted in his first international film, the Golden Globe and Academy Award-winning Slumdog Millionaire, as the character Constable Srinivas. In 2013, he appeared as policeman Sudhanshu Dutta in Barfi!, a film through which director Anurag Basu and co-actor Ranbir Kapoor, he said, "revived as an actor".

Filmography

As actor

YearFilmRoleNotes
1994Bandit QueenKailash
1996Is Raat Ki Subah NahinVilas Pandey
1998KareebBirju's father
1998ZakhmGurdayal Singh
1998SatyaKallu Mama
1999TaalBanerjee
1999Arjun PanditJohnny
1999BaadshahSaxena
1999Yeh Hai Mumbai Meri JaanMr. Malhotra "Chhotey"
2000Hey RamManohar LalwaniHindi-Tamil bilingual film.
2000Dil Pe Mat Le Yaar!!Gaitonde
2000MohabbateinSanjana's father
2000Snip!Munna
2001Nayak: The Real HeroPandurang
2001Yeh Teraa Ghar Yeh Meraa GharMama Kaanden
2001MokshaKale
2002Mere Yaar Ki Shaadi HaiLachhu Mama
2002'Suraj's drunk friendUncredited
2003Yeh DilEconomics Teacher
2003Calcutta MailGhatak
2003Raghu RomeoMario
2003Xcuse MeHotel Manager
2003Mumbai MatineeNitin Kapoor
2003Hazaaron Khwaishein AisiSenior Bihari Constable
2003Mudda - The IssueDinanath
2004YuvaGopal
2005Balu ABCDEFGKhan's briefTelugu film
2005Mumbai XpressKishore Mehta
2005Mumbai XpressTamil film; cameo appearance
2005AnniyanCable Company OwnerTamil film
Dubbed as Aparichitudu in Telugu and Aparichit in Hindi
2005YakeenChamanlal
2005Home DeliveryPandey
2005'Rajesh Jalan
2005ChehraaDirector
2005Allari BulloduKarim LalaTelugu film
2006Mixed DoublesSammy
2006Lage Raho Munna BhaiBatuk Maharaj
2006Care of FootpathRanga[Kannada film
2007'Dotcom Paaji
2007Khoya Khoya ChandProducer Khosa
2007ShowbizInder Raj Bahl
2008My Name is Anthony GonsalvesMurthy
2008MithyaShetty
2008De TaaliGodbole
2008'Diesel
2008Slumdog MillionaireHead Constable SrinivasEnglish/Hindi film
2008DasvidaniyaDasgupta
2008OMG! Oh, My GodGod
2009Luck By ChanceNand Kishore
2009Love KhichdiKrishnan
2009Chintu JiMalkani
2010Tera Kya Hoga JohnnyBegum
2010LahoreMadhav Suri
2010PaathshaalaLallan Sharma
2010MirchSatish
2011Utt PataangNandu Pandey
2011Yeh Saali ZindagiMehta
2011AarakshanMantri Baburao
2011Shakal Pe Mat JaVijay Dinanath Chauhan
2011Pappu Can't Dance Saala
2012Staying AliveShaukat Ali
2012I M 24
2012Barfi!Sudhanshu DuttaNominated—IIFA Award for Best Supporting Actor
2012Delhi SafariBharelaVoice only
2013DavidDavid's father
2013DavidDavid's fatherTamil film
2013Jolly LLBJustice Sunderlal TripathiNational Film Award for Best Supporting Actor
Screen Award for Best Supporting Actor
Nominated—IIFA Award for Best Supporting Actor
2013Phata Poster Nikhla HeroGundappa Das
2013KalpvrikshShankar Dada
2014GundayKaali Kaka
2014Main Tera HeroBalli
2014Gang of GhostsBhoothnath Bhaduri
2014Ek Tho ChanceTBA
2014KickBrijesh Mehra
2014PKTapasvi Maharaj
2015Kaun Kitne Paani MeinBraj Singh Deo
2015Mohalla AssiUpadhyay Pandit
2016Dhilluku DhudduKajal's fatherTamil film dubbed as Raj Mahal 3 in Hindi.
2016Identity Card Ghulam NabiPost-production
2016No Rules for Fools TBAPost-production
2017Jolly LLB 2Justice Sunderlal Tripathi
2017The Wishing Tree Dhaba Owner
2017Jagga JasoosEx IB Officer Sinha
2018RaidRameshwar "Rajaji" Singh a.k.a. "Tauji"
2018Shabhash KunduRobin RoyFilming
2018Daas DevAwadesh Pratap Chauhan
2019Fraud SaiyaanMurari Chaurasia
2019Family Of ThakurganjBaba Bhandari
2019Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyun Aata Hai?Remake of classic Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyoon Aata Hai
2019The Zoya FactorNikhil's dad
2019The Verdict - State vs NanavatiRussi KaranjiaZEE5
2019Ujda ChamanGuruji
2019BalaHari Shukla
2019PagalpantiRaja Sahab
2019Aadhaar
2020Chhalaang Masterji

As writer and director

YearFilmDirectorProducerScreenwriterNotes
1998Satya
2000Dil Pe Mat Le Yaar!!
2003Raghu Romeo
2003Calcutta MailNominated—Zee Cine Award for Best Screenplay
2003Mudda - The Issue
2005Chehraa
2005Mumbai Xpress
2007
2008Mithya
2009Acid Factory
2009Raat Gayi Baat Gayi?
2011Utt Pataang
2011Pappu Can't Dance Saala
2012Fatso!
2012I M 24

As lyricist

Awards

Shukla won the National Film Award and the Screen Award for the Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his performance in Jolly LLB.