He was born in Benares (Varanasi), Uttar Pradesh, British India. He was fond of plays and came to Mumbai to find a space on stage. He staged his own written play Pandrah August in Mumbai, later he tried his luck in films. He also had written many plays. In 1940 he got a role of moneylender (Sahukar) in a Mehboob Khan's film "Aurat" as Sukhilala. After that he later acted in many films as a character artist. When Mehboob Khan was directed his immortal film Mother India 1957 he again picked Kanhaiya Lal to act as Sukkhi Lala, a character that came alive with his natural acting. After that Kanhaiya Lal played similar type of roles in Ganga-Jamuna 1960, Gopi, Upkaar, Apna Desh, Dushman. His other notable movies are Dharti Kahe Pukar Ke, Hum Paanch.