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Govinda was born to former 1940s actor Arun and singer Nirmala. He studied at Annasaheb Vartak College in Vasai, Maharashtra. His elder brother Kirti Kumar is an actor and director who appeared in some of Govinda's films playing supporting roles and has directed his brother in some films most notably Hatya (1988). Govinda's nephew Vinay Anand is also an actor. Govinda initially wanted to marry actress Neelam with whom he had made many films but eventually gave up and married according to his mother's choice. He married Sunita Govind on 11 March 1987 and has two children with her. Govinda has acted in over 120 films since his debut in 1986. He has been one of the most successful comedy actors in Bollywood particularly during the 1990s. He had a narrow escape from death on January 5, 1994. While travelling to a studio for the shooting of 'Khuddar (1994)', the actor's car hit another car, resulting in him sustaining injuries to his head. Though bleeding profusely, Govinda did not cancel the shooting. After visiting a doctor, he shot for the film till midnight. After a brief stint in politics in 2003 . He has made a successfull comeback as of 2007 in the all time blockbuster Partner.
Govinda made his film debut in the 1986 film Ilzaam which was a box office success and launched his career. He acted in a string of movies after that with mixed success. Most of the films he appeared in during the 1980s were in the action, romance or family drama genres. He was often paired opposite actress Neelam and together they appeared in hit films such as Love 86 (1986), Khudgarz (1987) and his brother Kirti Kumar's directed Hatya (1988). He had success with family drama films such as Dariya Dil (1988), Jeete Hain Shaan Se (1988) and Hum (1991) as well as action films such as Marte Dam Tak (1987) and Jung Baaz.[5]. (1989). He worked with David Dhawan for the first time in the 1989 action film Taaqatwar.
He then formed a successful collaboration with David Dhawan and went onto act in 17 movies directed by him most of which were comedy films. The most successful films during their collaboration included Shola Aur Shabnam (1992), Aankhen (1993), Raja Babu (1994), Coolie No. 1 (1995), Saajan Chale Sasural (1996), Hero No. 1 (1997), Deewana Mastana (1997), Bade Miyan Chote Miyan (1998), Haseena Maan Jaayegi (1999) and Jodi No. 1 (2001). Dhawan and other directors frequently cast him opposite actresses such as Karishma Kapoor and Raveena Tandon during the 1990s.
Govinda played the role of a villain for the first time in his career in Shikari (2000). Although the movie was not a commercial success, Govinda's convincing portrayal of a sociopath murderer was critically acclaimed.His box office draw suffered a setback in the early 2000s following a series of commercially unsuccessful films. His acting career was further affected when he contested and won the seat for Member of Parliament from Mumbai North in the 2004 parliamentary elections. He did not have any new film releases in 2004 and 2005 although some of his delayed films such as Khullam Khulla Pyaar Karen (2005) and his own home production Ssukh (2005) were released but were box office disasters.
Govinda made a comeback to films in late 2006 with the comedy film Bhagam Bhag alongside Akshay Kumar which was a success. His first 2007 release was the huge multi-starrer Salaam-e-Ishq: A Tribute To Love. Although a box office disappointment. Govinda was praised for his performance.
His latest 2007 release is the David Dhawan directed romantic comedy Partner, which co-stars Salman Khan. The film grossed Rs.300 Million in India on its opening week, the second highest domestic opening week gross for an Indian film. |
