New Delhi: Actor Johny Lever has a solid body of work to support the fact that he is one of the greatest comedians in the business. But growing up in Dharavi, Mumbai, not only presented him with hardships but also the grim reality of living in a slum.
The 66-year-old actor revealed in an interview with Beer Biceps that he had tried suicide before, but changed his mind when he thought about his three younger sisters because of his father's alcoholism.
Johny Lever On Father's Alcoholism
Johny spoke in Hindi which loosely translates to, "I had difficulties when I was younger. I have my family to take care of. Food would only be available if I worked. When my father drank, he would lose his sense of judgement. He was formerly a notorious rowdy. I had thrown away his weapons so many times.”
The actor went on, "I went to a railway track to commit suicide when I was 13 years old. I had had enough of my dad. I proceeded to the track and the train approached. I quickly left the trail when my three younger sisters' faces suddenly materialised in front of me, asking, "What will happen to us?"
One of the most well-known comedians in Bollywood today, Johny, claimed that music was the thing that helped him escape his suicidal thoughts.
Johhny continued recounting the events of that evening, saying, "It must be around 6.45 pm or 7pm." After getting up, I moved closer to a barbershop where music was playing. I sat on the bench that was behind the store.
Johny was attracted to the song "Main to tum sang nain mila ke haar gayi sajna" from the 1962 movie ‘Man Mauji’ which played at the shop.
"When that music started playing at the shop, I felt like all of my anxiety and melancholy lifted. I began to feel well and wondered if I was going to give up music. I have a deep love for music. I was saved by music, and it gave me life lessons. "Observe its strength," a moved Johny said.
Days in Dharavi
The veteran actor recalled more days from Dharavi and added that he and the residents of Dharavi were used to seeing murders every day. When he was barely seven years old, he recalls seeing his first murder. "When I was enrolled in Class 3 at the school. I was seven years old. Someone had thrown someone and murdered them. Although talking about these things doesn't feel good, I have witnessed all of this," he remarked.