Bhojpuri ( pronunciation (help·info)) is a language spoken in parts of north-central and eastern India. It is spoken in the western part of state of Bihar, the northwestern part of Jharkhand, and the Purvanchal region of Uttar Pradesh (UP), as well as adjoining parts of the Nepal Terai. Bhojpuri is also spoken in Guyana, Suriname, Fiji, Trinidad and Tobago and Mauritius. The variant of Bhojpuri of the Surinamese Hindustanis is also referred to as Sarnami Hindustani, Sarnami Hindi or just Sarnami and has experienced considerable Creole and Dutch lexical influence. More Indians in Suriname know Bhojpuri compared to Guyana and Trinidad where the language is largely forgotten.

Bhojpuri is part of the Eastern-Hindi or Bengali continuum of languages which once extended from Assam and Bengal to Ballia. While the rest of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh slowly adopted the new Hindi standard (Khari Boli), the language remained strong in the areas between Patna and Benaras.Some scholar trace the literacy history of Bhojpuri from Siddha Sahitya itself, as early as 8th century A.D. Kabir’s contribution of ‘nirgun’ poetry to Sant Sahitya certainly qualifies as recorded literature in Bhojpuri in the 15th century.The nineteenth century has such works as Deviksaracarita by Ramdatta Shukla (1884), Badmasdarpan by Teg Ali Teg (1895), and Jangal me Mangal and Nagari Vilap by Ram Garib Chaube in the later half of the nineteenth century.

Ravi Kishan Shukla (born July 17, 1971), popularly known as Ravi Kishan, is an Indian film actor, voice actor and television personality, who works in Hindi cinema and Bhojpuri cinema. In 2006, he participated in Bigg Boss, the Indian version of Big Brother.

Ravi Kishan was born in Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh.

In June 2008 he was awarded the Most Popular Actor award at ETV Bhojpuri Cinema Samman 2008 function.

Popular reality shows like Big Boss and more recently Ek Se badhkar Ek have brought him to the front line of top Indian television actors. In 2008, he started co-hosting the celebrity dance-based reality show Bathroom Singer, Ek se badhkar ek - Jalwe sitaron ke on Zee. Ravi Kishan also hosted a Reality show, Raaz Pichhle Janam Ka, on ndtv Imagine for two seasons. Ravi Kishan has worked with legendary directors like Shyam Benegal and Mani Rathnam in the year 2010. A film starring Ravi Kishan, Jala Debh Duniya Tohra Pyar Mein, produced by American film company PUN Films, was shown in the India Pavilion at the [Cannes Film Festival] 2010.

Manoj Kumar Tiwari (born 1 February 1971) is a singer, actor, television presenter and music director^{[clarification needed]} from Bihar, India. He has acted in the Bhojpuri genre of the Indian film industry and in 2005 was reported to be one of the two leading male stars of that genre.

Manoj Tiwari was born on 1 February 1971, one of the six children of Chandra Deo Tiwari and Lalita Devi. His birthplace was Atarwalia, a small village in Kaimur district of Bihar.

Prior to Tiwari's involvement in cinema, he had spent ten years working as a singer.

In 2003, he took a role in the film Sasura Bada Paise Wala. The BBC reported that the production costs of US$ 65,000 were turned into takings of US$ 3 million, while The Hindu reported a 35,000–40,000 lakh cost resulting in takings of 4.5 crore. Indian Express reported a figure of 6.5 crore as the takings. The Bihar Jharkhand Motion Picture Association saw this production as being a turning point for Bhojpuri cinema. He followed this with the successful films Daroga Babu I Love You and Bandhan Toote Na. Tiwari is reported to have said in 2005 that although the Bhojpuri genre had generally kept to its traditional storylines, "Gone are the double entendres, thin story lines and poor technical quality. Films have been slick and producers are willing to put in close to Rs 80 lakh in a film because the returns are not bad,"