Piyush Mishra is an Indian film and theatre actor, music director, lyricist, singer and scriptwriter. Mishra grew up in Gwalior, and graduated from National School of Drama, Delhi in 1986. Thereafter, he started his career in Hindi theatre in Delhi. Over the next decade, he established himself as a theatre director, actor, lyricist and singer. He moved to Mumbai in 2002, receiving acclaim for his acting in Maqbool (2003) and Gangs of Wasseypur (2012). In 2014, he acted in the film The Shaukeens, along with Anupam Kher, Annu Kapoor, Lisa Hayden in the lead role, which had Akshay Kumar in an extended cameo. Piyush also appeared in The Kapil Sharma Show to promote the film with Anpuam Kher and Annu Kapoor. Although the film was a remake of the 1982 film Shaukeen directed by Basu Chatterjee, it was well appreciated by audience and was voted the best comedy film of 2014.