An incorrigible dreamer, Govinda dreamt of being an actor from a very young age. But the trouble was, he didn’t know how to become one, until a considerate maternal uncle, Anand, brought him from Virar to Mumbai and announced a film, Tan Badan, with him in the lead. He then spread the word among other producers. Before he knew what was up, Govinda had signed two more films, Pranlal Mehta’s Love 86 (1986) and Pahlaj Nihalani’s Ilzaam (1986). One of the most talented and versatile actors around, Govinda was constantly handicapped by being branded a comedian mainly because of his somewhat rolly-polly persona and the fact that his biggest hits have been David Dhawan’s laugh-a-minute flicks. But Govinda has it in him to do justice to any role, however complex, as he proved in Marte Dum Tak, a film  ‘inspired’ by Godfather I, standing up to actors of the calibre of Raaj Kumar, Om Puri and Alok Nath, in a role immortalized by Al Pacino in 1972. He was equally brilliant in Hatya, another remake of a Hollywood film.                                                    

To his credit, Govinda has scaled the rungs of stardom without the backing of the bigwigs of the industry. The likes of Yash Chopra and Subhash Ghai never considered him for a film for long. When Ghai approached him for a character role in his Taal, Govinda turned it down because "it was too early" for him to play second fiddle to another actor! The attitude did deprive him of choice roles but he was never bothered. Though he had an enviable run at the top for a fairly long stretch, his lack of professionalism and a poor sense of punctuality did begin to catch up with him. Waiting for Govinda on the set, as a producer once remarked, was like waiting for the proverbial Godot. To overcome the sudden slump in his career towards the end of 2003, govinda rushed into politics and defeated veteran BJP politician Ram Naik on a Congress ticket in the last general elections. But his performance as an MP has only drawn flak so far. Unable to cash in on his political opportunities, Govinda returned to his first love -- acting -- in 2006 and came up with a hit in his mainstay David Dhawan's Partner in the company of  of Salman Khan.