'''Rajesh Vivek Upadhyay''' (31 January 1949 – 14 January 2016) was an Indian actor. He is best known to Hindi film audiences for his role as the astrologer Guran in ''[[Lagaan]]'' (2001) and as the postmaster Nivaran in ''[[Swades]]'' (2004). He had also played role of [[Vyasa]], author of the Hindu epic [[Mahabharata]], in the popular Indian series ''[[Mahabharat (1988 TV series)|Mahabharat]]''. He made his mark as a villain in the beginning with films like ''[[Veerana]]'' (1988) and ''[[Joshilaay]]'' (1989), often playing the role of a henchman, and later took to portraying comedic and supporting characters. His other credits include ''[[Mujhse Shaadi Karogi]]'', ''[[What's Your Raashee?]]'' and ''[[Bunty Aur Babli]]''. Rajesh is also noted for his roles in the historic TV series ''[[Bharat Ek Khoj]]'' and in the TV Serial ''Aghori''. He was roped in for an ad series of ''Cadbury 5 Star'' as the father of the two sons.
'''Rajesh Vivek Upadhyay''' (31 January 1949 – 14 January 2016) was an [[India]]n actor. He was best known for his roles in ''[[Lagaan]]'', ''[[Swades]]'', ''[[Mahabharat (1988 TV series)|Mahabharat]]'', ''[[Mujhse Shaadi Karogi]]'', ''[[Bharat Ek Khoj]]'', ''[[What's Your Raashee?]]'' and ''[[Bunty Aur Babli]]''. He was born in [[Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh|Jaunpur]], [[Uttar Pradesh]].
==Biography==
Vivek died from [[heart attack]] on 14 January 2016 in [[Hyderabad]], [[Telangana]]. He was 66.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.business-standard.com/article/news-ians/guran-of-lagaan-actor-rajesh-vivek-dead-116011401442_1.html|title=Guran of 'Lagaan', actor Rajesh Vivek dead|work=Business Standard|accessdate=16 January 2016|date=14 January 2016}}</ref>
Vivek was born on 31 January 1949 in [[Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh|Jaunpur]], [[Uttar Pradesh]].<ref>{{cite book |author=Harris M. Lentz III |title=Obituaries in the Performing Arts, 2016 |date=11 August 2017 |publisher=McFarland, 2017 |isbn=9781476629124 |pages=409 |edition=Illustrated |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HYowDwAAQBAJ&q=rajesh+vivek+jaunpur&pg=PT423 |accessdate=27 March 2019}}</ref> He obtained his [[Master of arts]] degree in Ancient history & Archaeology from T. D. Degree College, Jaunpur, and trained at the [[National School of Drama]] in acting. Filmmaker [[Shyam Benegal]] first introduced him in films with his film ''[[Junoon (1978 film)|Junoon]]'' (1978).<ref name=NDTV/>
Rajesh died on 14 January 2016 at the age of 66 due to a massive heart attack while shooting for a film at [[Hyderabad]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.india.com/showbiz/rajesh-vivek-dies-after-suffering-heart-attack-lagaan-actor-passes-away-at-66-years-of-age-862816/|title=Rajesh Vivek dies after suffering heart attack; Lagaan actor passes away at 66 years of age|first=Mohammed Uzair|last=Shaikh|work=india.com|date=14 January 2016|accessdate=27 March 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.business-standard.com/article/news-ians/guran-of-lagaan-actor-rajesh-vivek-dead-116011401442_1.html|title=Guran of 'Lagaan', actor Rajesh Vivek dead|work=business-standard.com|date=14 January 2016|last=IANS|accessdate=27 March 2019}}</ref><ref name=NDTV>{{cite news|url=http://movies.ndtv.com/bollywood/actor-rajesh-vivek-lagaans-astrologer-guran-dies-of-heart-attack-reports-1265953|title=Rajesh Vivek, Astrologer Guran From Lagaan, Dies of Heart Attack|first=Chandni|last=Prashar|date=15 January 2016|work=[[NDTV]]|accessdate=27 March 2019}}</ref>
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