Chunky Panday recalls when Shah Rukh Khan and Gauri Khan used to live in a rented flat, says he always knew SRK would become a superstar

Shah Rukh Khan is one of the world’s most popular movie stars, and his stature was cemented last year, when he delivered the three biggest hits of his career – Pathaan, Jawan, Dunki – back-to-back. However, SRK is also the quintessential outsider in the film industry. After refining his chops in the Delhi theatre scene, he went to Mumbai to pursue acting in early 1990s. Fellow actor Chunky Panday recently opened up about the superstar’s initial days in the city of dreams.

Talking to Time Out with Ankit, Chunky shared, “I think one of his first friends in Bombay when he arrived was my younger brother Chikki. They’re still the best of friends. So, at that time, they (Shah Rukh and Gauri) were renting a place and they used to come to meet my brother, sab baith ke video cassettes dekhte the (the would sit together and watch movies on video cassettes). So he and Gauri were in my house quite often.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Chunky Panday (@chunkypanday)

Chunky also revealed that very early on in their careers, he knew that SRK would become a superstar one day. He said, “With Shah Rukh, I was so sure this boy is going to become a superstar. Because he had that in him, you can see that fire… He’s always had that. That talent has always been there with him before he became the superstar. So he’s very confident and he knew where he was going. I’m of course very proud that I’ve known him since then. He hasn’t changed.”

Chunky and his wife Bhavana are close friends with Shah Rukh and his wife Gauri. Their daughters, Ananya Panday and Suhana Khan, are friends too. SRK was last seen in Rajkumar Hirani’s Dunki. The actor is now preparing for The King, which will also star Suhana, who made her acting debut with Netflix’s The Archies.

Click for more updates and latest Bollywood news along with Entertainment updates. Also get latest news and top headlines from India and around the world at The Indian Express.