Comedian Rajiv Thakur, who kick-started his career at the same time as Kapil Sharma and Chandan Prabhakar in Amritsar, recalled living in extreme poverty while growing up. In an interview, he said that he would share 50 grams of Amul butter with his siblings, and that, too, only on certain occasions. As a result of that deprivation, he said, he makes it a point to request extra butter in every meal these days. He said that he also switches on all the lights in his bedroom, even though he knows that dim lighting is more aesthetically pleasing, because he grew up in a house with just one 40 watt lightbulb. In an interview with Hindi Rush, Rajiv recalled the difficult conditions he lived in, and the impact that they have left on him. "I experienced more poverty than anybody should. The five of us used to live in a cramped room; it was our bedroom, our living room, even our bathroom and kitchen. In the winters, we would cover up ventilation holes in the wall with old newspapers, and that, too, discarded newspapers. Amul butter was a luxury." Also read - ‘Yash Chopra had all the money and resources in the world, but he couldn’t make Uday Chopra a star’: Rajiv Thakur says he can’t rely on Kapil Sharma forever He said that his father would buy 50 grams of the butter, which he'd give to him and his two siblings to share between them. "Our parents didn't have any. The three of us loved it. We wanted more, but there wasn't any. Now, whenever I go to Amritsar, I always request extra butter in my food," he said, recalling the kindness that his school principal showed to him. He said that she agreed to admit him and his siblings for half the usual fee, and in exchange, his mother would do some tailoring for her. Sometimes, Rajiv would pick up and drop clothes off at his principal's house. "That was when I first saw a tubelight, because at our house, we only had one 40 watt bulb. We would study under the same bulb and wonder why our eyes were hurting." His principal would notice him looking at a basket of fruit, and would offer him a banana. "I would take the banana and savour it, bit by bit, on my way back home," he said, revealing that he still switches on all the lights in his bedroom because darkness reminds him of his childhood poverty. Rajiv went to Mumbai to make a career as an entertainer, along with Kapil Sharma and Chandan Prabhakar. In a previous appearance on the Dostcast podcast, Rajiv said that he has paid his dues, and is now entitled to certain perks. He said, “If I perform for a friend, I can do the show for free or take a pay cut, but I won’t compromise on a business class ticket and suite to stay in. That experience is more valuable to me than money. I love going to the business lounge; it has its own charm,” said the comedian. “We used to see characters in film who were successful, the way they would conduct themselves, the way they would sit and the way they would order something for themselves. I don’t want money; I want that feeling.”
