The dashing Suniel Shetty turns 62 years old today. The actor, who has impressed audiences not just with his acting talent but also with his values, fitness and not to forget, LinkedIn posts, was kind enough to exclusively speak to Bollywood Hungama about his birthday plans and a lot more.
What are your birthday plans this year?
I had planned to spend the day at the Golden Temple, Amritsar but I am travelling immediately afterwards. So, I’ll be at home and spend the day with family, and with friends who are like family!
As a kid, how did you celebrate your birthday?
My father would take us out to the movies or for dinner. The celebrations used to be simple and just like they would be for a typical middle-class Indian family.
Did Athiya and Ahan Shetty give you gifts when they were kids? Do you recall any fond memory in this regard?
Gifts never mattered to me and gifts don’t matter to me. The name ‘Athiya’ means gift of God and ‘Ahan’ means first rays of the sun. Both of them are magical for me and they are my biggest gifts. The fact that they are with me, are there to wish me and spend time with me is more than what I would ever dream of.
Dhadkan (2000) was released on your birthday. It was a landmark film in your career. That year, your birthday must have been special, right?
I don’t fuss about birthdays. I get a bit uncomfortable with birthdays and people wishing me! But yes, of course, the success of Dhadkan will always be special for me. Dhadkan is a special film for me, especially for an action hero who’s supposed to be non-romantic. So when you get appreciated for such a role and especially when women come and tell you that they loved the film, it means a lot. That’s what an actor looks for – love and appreciation.
A lot of people on social media nowadays joke and wonder how your Dhadkan character Dev becomes stinking rich in 3 years. They remark ‘I wish we knew what Dev did to become so wealthy’! How would you react to it?
Yes, I am aware of people wondering how he became stinking rich then. I guess the character was futuristic (laughs). Today you have kids in the first year who are unicorns. Dev made Rs. 500 crores. Today, kids make Rs. 5000 crores. Maybe he owned a startup that had something to do with health and walking! I enjoy the memes related to it a lot. So, in today’s world, it seems ‘Ho sakta. Aaram se ho sakta hai. Dev toh aaj Rs. 50,000 crores kama sakta hai’.
Your posts on LinkedIn are superb! You recently raised the point that actors should opt for profit sharing. Many producers, however, want actors to reduce their fees. Your thoughts?
An actor should be aware of his market and should charge exactly what he believes he’s worth. I honestly believe that working in partnerships and working in tandem is important. Producers have always made money and the actors have only got their share of the fee. Nothing else. I would be keen that if Ahan works with someone, he should rather work as a partner and make money perpetually. Success and failure can be shared by all parties. That’s how I look it and that’s how the world operates today. If we need Hindi cinema to do well, this needs to happen because even in the South, the actors are partners. Most of the time, it’s their families who are producing their films. So, when you can do it with family, why can’t you do it with your producers and friends, and stay in profits perpetually?
But thank you for your kind words on LinkedIn. I am as raw as I can be. I am not a double graduate or MBA. But my experiences and the lessons that my father and the industry have taught me and also what the restaurant trade and my failures have taught me are what my Linkedin posts are all about. I attempt to be brutally honest in this virtual world. Because in the virtual world, everybody pretends to be a rockstar. Being true is what I believe everyone is looking for.
You have worked down South and will be working in Matka as well. Last year, one film from down South, Kantara (2022) became a nationwide rage. You opened up that come what may, you go every year to Mulki, Karnataka for the Bhoota Kola. Could you share more about it and how the experience is to see it live?
These poojas have always meant the world to me and my family. That’s what keeps us one and the faith alive. When you hit a low, it’s the faith that the Almighty will take care of everything that keeps my family going. We believe in it blindly as we have seen it work. That’s what has made me realize that karma exists. I’ll always continue to follow that when it comes to belief because a guru or parents are the only ones you can go to even when you have done something wrong. Or when you are at your peak and if you are indebted to life itself and what it’s giving you, it’s a beautiful space to be in. That’s the space I am in right now. I have done my bit. It’s like life coming into a circle. So it’s a beautiful phase for me.
Also Read: Suniel Shetty shares update on Hera Pheri 3; says, “We’ve shot for the promos”
More Pages: Dhadkan Box Office Collection , Dhadkan Movie Review
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