Jaspal Bhatti, the comedy icon of Indian small screen

Jaspal Bhatti Chandigarh, Nov.23 : Jaspal Bhatti is today known as one of the most popular characters of Indian small screen with his famous serials “Ulta Pulta” and “Flop Show” showcasing an impressive sense of humour mixed with satire on daily life.
 
An engineer-turned-showman, Bhatti gained popularity at a time when most people would watch television for movies or national news. No cable television technology was available at that time.

Most of his productions are spoofs ridiculing corruption in society. We call this satirist, actor and director "the achiever".

“My father was working for Punjab State Electricity Board and at that time Bhakhra Nangal Dam was under-construction. Being an engineer, he was deputed to look after the construction work. Watching so many engineers at the site influenced me and I dream of becoming an engineer.

“I enrolled myself in the Punjab Engineering College. But by the time I finished my engineering, my interest in engineering had also come to an end. Meanwhile, I joined films and stage. I don’t know whether that loss of interest was due to our education system or what?,” says Jaspal Bhatti.

“I didn't follow any personality. My talent was natural without having a formal training. Had I taken any formal training, I might be following a particular Gharana (school of thought) or a personality to this day. I was crazy about making cartoons,” he said.

“Since the beginning I was very much influenced and impressed by parodies. In the ‘Flop Show’, we used to end the program with a parody. Parody is the comic situation of any caricature. Be it a serious situation, when we present it in a humorous way, the gloomy situation turns into a kind of parody. It creates a humor in the situation. We sometimes do it with the songs. We used to make parodies of old classical songs which creates a great humor,” says Bhatti.

The living legend of comedy has a dream--to make a movie.

“I still want to make a good budget Hindi movie. I haven't achieved that goal. So, it's my ultimate aim and very shortly I am planning to make that film. My career's high point was the hit of `Flop Show' program on television. The whole nation used to watch that program and people still remember it. You can call it the high point of mine, but in my point of view I haven't achieved much. I have worked a little. I wanted to make more efforts,” said Bhatti, the never-say-die man.

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