Lookalikes look for a relief

With the entertainment industry being completely shut, many lookalikes of our actors have been at the receiving end

The Coronavirus crisis has brought everyone to a grinding halt. And daily wage earners are suffering the most. With the entertainment industry being completely shut, many lookalikes of our actors have been at the receiving end.

Raju Rahikwar is fondly called junior Shah Rukh Khan

46-year-old Raju Rahikwar, a lookalike of Shah Rukh Khan who has been entertaining the audience since 1995 says that due to lockdown, he is finding it difficult to support his family, “I don’t see things getting better anytime soon. Along with a friend, I have started a small business of selling hand sanitisers and masks. I need to feed my family and also pay school fees of my children,” he shares.

Khan’s last release was Zero (2018). For Rahikwar who is fondly called Junior SRK, work has been slow since then but he remains positive, “If Khan saab doesn’t work, I don’t get any work. But I am sure he will come back with a bang. He is waiting for the lockdown to get over and announce a big movie. But my lockdown will end when I will see my idol who has given me an identity on the big screen again,” he explains.

Arif Khan who is a lookalike of Anil Kapoor and also the President of All India Look Alike Association feels the industry should look into their problems, “FWICE President, B.N Tiwari and Secretary Ashok Dubey have been doing a great job for daily wage workers. I really appreciate their efforts, but I believe the industry should look after us. As there are no film or ad shoots and events going on, the lookalikes have been jobless. We need the industry to do something for us, just like the daily wage earners are being supported,” he says.

Zaed, who is a lookalike of Sunny Deol is extremely worried about the current situation. He says, “I have been doing this all my life. I am not even in a position to think what else can I do for a living. Many people are dependent on my income and the situation is just getting bad to worse.”