Jamie Lever and Jesse Lever are all about sibling goals as they take forward the legacy of their father Johny Lever in the comedy genre. While Jamie takes it as a serious responsibility to entertain fans, Jesse is the ‘cool’ one who may not be too punctual but manages to get the perfect comic timing with his sister. Despite three comedians in the family, its their mom who they say is the best among them all. The brother-sister duo recently went on A Spin Around Dubai for an adventure web series of the same name on MXPlayer. In a candid interview with Hindustan Times, the siblings talked about all about their fun adventures, their cold wars, the one habit that sets them apart and all they are set out to do this year. Also read: Johnny Lever on losing work over the years
Jamie and Jesse’s sibling chemistry in their funny lockdown videos was an instant hit on Instagram. It not just won them thousands of fans but also a free trip around Dubai in the MX Player show. Recalling their time at the sky view observatory from the 53rd floor of a building their best experience, they say taking a ride on a hot air balloon was something they had not expected to do. “I thought I was afraid of heights but it was her who was afraid despite doing skydiving before,” says Jesse, adding “What we realised is we are quite daredevils. We didn’t scream at all as such during the rollercoaster ride and were only screaming for fun.”
It wasn’t their first trip together as the two have travelled together for Johny Lever’s shows since many years. Jamie however has hardly any other choice and says, “My first option is if I have to go to Goa, I ask him ‘chalna hai (you want to come)?’ He is always my go-to person, although he doesn’t want to be my go-to person (laughs). He has his own guy friends.” And just because of this, she also stands by his habit of always being late. She says, “He is always late, I can’t stand it. I am extra punctual and am am always there 5 mins before. This guy, he is cool and comes at his own time. He tries to act like a star and I have a problem with it. We have this timing issue but our comic timing is very good. He is on time for work but on holidays, he’s like ‘just chill’.”
But unlike every other sibling duo, Jesse and Jamie hardly fight. “Now we have cold wars, like adults. We go silent for a few days,” says Jesse. “He has pulled my hair so much during childhood that if I have less hair now, it’s all his fault. We have dealt with it enough during our childhood, now we have become good friends,” adds Jamie.
Ask them about who’s the funniest of them all and Jamie replies, “I am on screen funny. Jesse is naturally funny. He is the favourite among our cousins. I take it as a responsibility to make funny videos.” But Jesse cuts her short, “Actually what, my mom is the funniest.” Jamie agrees, “we must not show it because she has the worst PJs and we do not want the world to see. Lever khandan mein itne gande jokes bhi hote hain kya, hote hain, meri ma hai (can there be so bad jokes in the Lever family? Yes, there are, my mom has the worst PJs).”
Jamie made it big with her short but memorable appearance on The Kapil Sharma Show last year. On being asked about such a short stint, she says, “The team was very keen on having me and wanted me since quite some time. I did 3-4 episodes, it was very fun. I felt like home. Kapil bhai loves me, he looks up to daddy, and is like ‘Jamie meri chhoti behen hai, ya meri beti jaisi hai (she is like my sister or daughter)’. He really made me feel comfortable and I knew most of the team from before. I had other projects, so I couldn’t give them the commitment. If ever I get the opportunity to go on the show again, I will grab it. It has been an amazing platform for me and I know they will be happy to have me on the show. I will love to perform, it’s just a matter of timing.”
As an actor, Jesse wants to want to do different things. She says, “I have been doing comedy for 10 years. You have seen me in bits and pieces here and there. We have taken the responsibility to take this legacy forward. I have just completed a film in which I have not done any comedy. This year, you will also see me and daddy in a comedy web series. It’s one of my biggest work so far. Dad is very happy with my role given by Farhad Samji.”
She adds, “When Jesse was small, he made it very obvious to us that he wanted to get into acting and comedy. We thought he would be the one to do standup. I took time to understand that this is my calling. I chose to do comedy and start my career with Comedy Cirkus. We do feel responsible that we need to make people laugh and entertain them. Whether we get an opportunity or not in movies or shows, we use our social media handles to entertain people, its truly a privilege and an honour to do that. Not everybody can make people laugh, comedy is difficult to do. We feel that if it comes naturally to us, we should use the talent to entertain people.”
Jesse played a small role in Siddharth Anand’s War. He currently has two comedy films, one produced by Remo D’souza, and the other, a trilingual film in Hindi, English and Marathi with father Johny. It will release in summer this year.