Meet actor who started by performing in Ramlila, debuted with Jaya Bachchan; rose to fame in Aamir Khan’s iconic film and his directorial movie won National Film Award
Every year, scores of people touchdown in Mumbai to realize their dream of being a Bollywood star. While some are lucky enough to have backing in the industry, others have to work their way to the top. Yashpal Sharma is one such artist who always wanted to be an actor. As a child, he would perform at Ramlila organized during Dussehra. Sharma, who is born and brought up in Hisar, Haryana enrolled in the National School of Drama to finetune his craft.
After working at NSD for a couple of years, he made his film debut in Hazaar Chaurasi Ki Maa alongside Jaya Bachchan, Anupam Kher, Nandita Das, and many other established stars. Yashpal Sharma’s minor role in the 1988 movie attracted more work. He was then offered films like Arjun Pandit and Mujhe Kucch Kehna Hai. But it was Aamir Khan’s period sports drama film, Lagaan that brought him to the forefront. His portrayal of Lakha made him the talk of the town.
A year later, Sharma shared the screen with Kareena Kapoor Khan in Chameli followed by Gangaajal which made him famous as one of the best villains. From here, his journey went upward and he bagged several blockbuster hits like Singh Is Kinng, Lamhaa, Akshay Kumar and Sonakshi Sinha’s Rowdy Rathore, Gangs of Wasseypur, Salman Khan’s Tubelight, Saif Ali Khan and Rani Mukerji led Bunty Aur Babli 2 and more. Earlier this year, Yashpal played the role of Major Uttam Singh in Kartik Aaryan’s Chandu Champion.
While Sharma has proved his mettle as a skilled actor who worked across languages, he also tried his hands in filmmaking and directed the Haryanvi language biographical film, Dada Lakhmi. The 2022 movie which is based on the life and struggles of Haryanvi folk singer Lakhmi Chand was also penned by him. The actor also played the titular role in the movie which eventually won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Haryanvi.
Having said that, The Great Indian Family actor also worked in several TV serials and web shows his latest being IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack. While today he is an inspiration to many, Yashpal Sharma calls Naseeruddin Shah his guru and idol.
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