Actor Anupam Kher, who made his debut in Bollywood with director Mahesh Bhatt's 1984 film Saaransh, shared how got the role in the film after he was rejected for it once. In a recent post for social media blog Humans Of Bombay, Anupam Kher revealed that he once stole money from his mom for an advertisement audition and got selected in it. He said he lied to his mom about Chandigarh audition and told her that he is going on a picnic. Talking about what drove him towards acting, Anupam said: "I got my calling when I acted in a play in 9th grade. I couldn't say my lines well, so they were given to someone else. But during the play, he forgot to say them! So I made something up in my broken English - the audience was in splits!"
"I loved being on stage and wanted to act full time. I saw an Ad for a course in Chandigarh and needed Rs 100 for the audition. I stole it from my mom and told her I was going for a picnic. Thankfully, I was accepted! So I went to Chandigarh to study acting. I was a teacher for 2 years, before I saw an ad that a drama school in Mumbai was hiring. When I got here, I realised they had no money - they gave me a small space to teach and a tiny room to stay," he further said.
Anupam said due to shortage of money, he had to even "live on beaches" and "sleep on platforms." He said: "I didn't want to go back a failure. So I taught there, while auditioning and performing in plays. It was hard-at one point I had no work, money or help. I had to live on beaches and sleep on platforms. I didn't want to worry my parents, so I wrote to my granddad that I wanted to come back. But he replied, 'A man who's already drenched in water, shouldn't be scared of rains'- I didn't give up!"
"It's good that I didn't, because soon, I got a role in a Mahesh Bhatt film. I got money and a place to stay. But later, I was told I was replaced. I called Mahesh Bhatt and he said it was true. I couldn't take it and decided to go home. But first, I met Mahesh Bhatt and told him no one would play the part better than me - he was making a mistake. So he told the producers he wouldn't make the film without me - he saw the vigour with which I wanted to act. That's how I got my first film," said Anupam.
Speaking about his journey in Bollywood so far, Anupam said: "Today I've done over 500 films. It's been a bumpy ride, but every day, I thank my failures for bringing me this far. I thank all the people who said no to me, all the people who didn't help me - because if it weren't for them I wouldn't have pushed myself to get where I am today... A place, where my dreams are now my reality."
Read his entire conversation here:
Anupam Kher has marked his presence in Bollywood as well as in Hollywood with several hits such as A Wednesday, Silver Linings Playbook, Mrs Wilson, Chaahat, Baby, Kya Kehna and Special 26.
On the work front, Anupam was last seen in the 2019 film The Accidental Prime Minister, in which he played the role of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. He will next be seen in Rohit Shetty's Sooryavanshi, which stars Akshay Kumar and Katrina Kaif in lead roles.
