Monday 1 July 2013

BORN TO MAKE PEOPLE LAUGH

Popular as Navvula Doctor,Telugu mimicry artiste,J Ramesh is known for his impeccable imitations and has been a huge hit with the Telugu NRIs in the USAwell known comedian on Indian television had said that making people laugh is the toughest job in the world.But if there is one thing that artiste J Ramesh has been doing with a lot of zeal and honesty,its entertaining people with his mimicry,ventriloquism and singing styles of popular vocalists! Among his various expertise,Rameshs best skills include his ability to belly laugh and flawlessly do a cover of any old Telugu song in Mohd Rafis melancholic voice.


I do imitation cover songs.Though the voice is a popular singers,the lyrics are mine.I usually sing them at the end of a performance, says Ramesh.But imitating voices is not the only thing Ramesh does.The artiste also sings for social awareness.My last song was a tribute to the Delhi rape victim,Nirbhaya,and my next number,Jarigindhi Ghoram,will be a tribute to the Uttarkhand disaster victims, says the performer.
Juggling between the jobs of a comedian and a media person,Ramesh says he always wanted to pursue a career in mimicry.I started performing as an independent mimicry artiste when I was 15 years old.Since then,Ive been constantly learning,relearning and unlearning to suit the audiences preferences, explains Ramesh.

Today,Ramesh is a huge name in the United States.Since the last few years,he has seldom got a chance to spend festivals with his family,as hes been busy entertaining global audiences.Ask him what his USP is,and he quips,Spontaneous jokes in the voice of popular politicians.Anyone can imitate a politician,but your talent lies in doing it spontaneously.I dont rehearse and practice my lines.Some of my best performances include imitating Chandrababu Naidu,Lalu Prasad Yadav and Sonia Gandhi, says Ramesh,revealing that he had also imitated ex Andhra Pradesh chief minister K Rosaiah at a show where the minister was present!
The artiste also boasts of performing in front of popular Tollywood personalities like producers Tammareddy Bharadwaja and D Ramanaidu,director K Viswanath and singer SP Balasubramanium.But he says his most cherished memory is of the time when Mahatma Gandhis granddaughter,Sumitra Gandhi Kulkarni,appreciated his performance at a program in Khammam.I imitated Mahatma Gandhi,and after the show,Sumitra came and told me,I heard my grandfathers voice when I was a little kid.Today,listening to his voice after three decades feels great, recalls the artiste.

Having spent more than 25 years in the industry and with more than 6,000 performances under his belt,both nationally and internationally,there is one thing that still eludes Ramesh local recognition.Audiences abroad have given me titles like Mimicry Maghadheera and Hasya Kala Vidooshi.Im quite appreciated and encouraged all over the world.But sadly,when it comes to Hyderabad,there is hardly anyone who acknowledges my talent, he laments.

On a different note,the artiste thinks Tollywood should open doors to new and upcoming comedians.Unlike Bollywood,where comedians like Johnny Lever or Kader Khan have given way to younger talents like Krushna Abhishek or Raju Srivastava,Tollywood is still wary of trying out new artistes.Fresh talent should be given a chance too, he says.dipika.pillay@timesgroup.com

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