Besides being a lawyer, Khurana was also a video jockey, a radio jockey, and a television host among others before becoming an actor.
Aparshakti Khurana's journey as an actor - how he came into the scene and grew to be everyone's favorite - is quite interesting. Back in 2016, when 'Dangal' was released theatrically, this actor (a new face at that time) grabbed all the eyeballs with his performance. Remember, the film starred superstar Aamir Khan as the lead, and was a big-budget sports drama - so obviously, he could easily have been overshadowed. But Khurana, a supporting actor in the film, felt like a breath of fresh air that kept us engaged throughout the runtime. And audiences were all wondering: Who is this charming young guy stealing the show so effortlessly with his comic timing? Then everyone came to know that this is "Ayushmann Khurrana's brother". Well, quite unfortunately, that tag - "Ayushmann Khurrana's brother" - stayed with him thereafter for years.
Aparshakti Khurana with his brother, actor Ayushmann Khurrana
However, Aparshakti Khurana is an actor par excellence, and hence it didn't take him long to break free from his brother's shadow. Now, people recognize him for his own legacy, and this explains what a talent he is! Especially, his performance in the Amazon Prime show 'Jubilee' proves that he is one of the finest of his generation in the industry.
(Credit: aparshakti_khurana)
The actor celebrates his 37th birthday today. On this occasion, we share an interesting fact about him that you didn't know.
Yes, you read it right! Aparshakti Khurana, who has impressed us with his work in so many films and web shows, studied law for five years in Chandigarh. Then, he practiced as a lawyer under senior lawyer Amarjit Singh Chandhok at the Delhi High Court. There, his job was to help his seniors "research cases, finding precedent judgments which could help them nail a case and take care of their files."
However, within 3 months, he realized that this wasn't what he would like to do for the rest of his life. On an episode of the reality cooking show 'Star Vs Food Survival', Khurana reflected on his life before showbiz, saying, "Audiences feel 'Dangal' or 'Jubilee' is the turning point of my life. But honestly, the day I shifted from Delhi High Court to a radio station in Delhi. That was the turning point in my life. The work I was putting in didn't feel like work. I used to work 15-18 hour shifts without cribbing. I got my calling that day, that this is what I want to do in life."
Well, this is also true. Khurana was once a professional cricketer and aspired to play for the Indian cricket team. He played in the Haryana Under-19 cricket team, representing his state in several national tournaments. Besides cricket, he also played volleyball, squash, and football.
Notably, he couldn't achieve his desired goal in cricket, which propelled him to law. As he later shared in an interview, "If you really want to be a Sachin Tendulkar or an AR Rahman, you have to be a master of one. You can’t be a Jack of all trades. Because your energies get diverted. But having said that, you can’t really plan to become a legend. I was not only playing cricket, but I was also playing volleyball, squash badminton – all of them together. I wanted to be a sportsperson."
"You have to show that seriousness, that passion that commitment at the age of 15. I respect all sportspersons a lot more than actors. I wasn’t serious. I pray to God that give me another life and let me start from scratch and I’ll make sure that I am a cricketer. This time I’ll make sure I don’t get distracted by what my brother is doing. I get very emotional when anyone talks about cricket."
"Once I failed in cricket, I joined a law course but when it also did not work out, it was another setback. When you get back-to-back failures, you automatically start to work harder in life," he added.
Khurana wanted to do something creative, which would also allow him to travel and have fun. Hence, he quit his career as a lawyer and started working as a copywriter. He used to write scripts for advertisements, and sometimes for jingles. Within some time, he became a radio jockey and continued working in the industry for eight years across three different radio stations. Meanwhile, he also hosted lots of shows (both live and on television) and acted in theatre.
(Credit: aparshakti_khurana)
Destiny had bigger plans for him. One day, an assistant casting director spotted him in a Munshi Premchand play and recommended him for Neeraj Pandey’s 'Saat Uchakkey', which featured Manoj Bajpayee, Vijay Raaz, and Annu Kapoor. Around the same time, he auditioned for 'Dangal' and was selected. The rest, as they say, is history!
Happy Birthday, Aparshakti Khurana. Best Wishes For All Your Upcoming Endeavors!
