New Delhi: Popular comedian-actor Raju Srivastava continues to be "critical and on ventilator" in the intensive care unit (ICU) of the AIIMS here, sources said on Friday. The 58-year-old stand-up comic was admitted to the hospital after suffering a heart attack on Wednesday and later underwent angioplasty.
"Srivastava continues to be critical and on ventilator in the ICU," the source told a newswire. The comedian is being treated by Dr Nitish Naik, professor at the department of cardiology at the AIIMS.
Srivastava's cousin Ashok Srivastava had on Wednesday evening said the comic suffered a heart attack while exercising. "He was doing his routine exercise and while he was on the treadmill, he suddenly fell down. He suffered a heart attack and was immediately taken to the AIIMS hospital," he had said, adding that the actor-comedian's wife Shikha Srivastava had reached Delhi.
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Srivastava, who has been active in the entertainment industry since late 1980s, received recognition after participating in the first season of stand-up comedy show The Great Indian Laughter Challenge in 2005. He has appeared in Hindi films such as Maine Pyar Kiya, Baazigar, Bombay to Goa (remake) and Aamdani Atthani Kharcha Rupaiya. He was one of the contestants on Bigg Boss season three.
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Srivastava is the current chairman of the Film Development Council Uttar Pradesh. A day after Srivastava suffered a heart attack, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, on Thursday, took a stock of his health from AIIMS Director Randeep Guleria. The Defence Minister dialled the hospital's director to take an update about the health of the stand-up comedian.
Interestingly, Raju Srivastava has also had a stint in politics. He started his career as a politician in 2014 with Samajwadi Party and within a month joined hands with BJP. The comedian was about to contest from Samajwadi Party's Lok Sabha ticket in 2014 from Kanpur, but he had a change of heart as he returned the ticket to join BJP and at that point, Rajnath Singh was the party president.
