Vicky Kaushal, who is gearing up for his big release Bad Newz, recalled his father Sham Kaushal’s struggles in Punjab on the podcast show of Raj Shamani. The Masaan actor also revealed that his father contemplated suicide once as he was jobless. Sensing the gravity of the situation, Vicky’s grandfather sent him off to Mumbai where he built his career as an action director. During the same conversation, Vicky recalled that he was supposed to do a regular 9-5 job. But when he told his parents that he wanted to become an actor, his father said he couldn’t help him much as he didn’t have a hold in the industry.
Recalling his father’s struggles, Vicky told Raj Shamani, “Dad came to Mumbai in 1978. He had an MA in English literature, but he was still jobless. One day, after drinking with his friends, he declared that he wants to die. My grandfather became very concerned, so he sent him to Mumbai.” Sharing about his “secure” job, Vicky said, “My parents were very happy with the idea of me having a regular job. My grandfather had a small kirane ki dukaan in our village in Punjab. That’s where my parents are from. We had no land back there.”
Speaking of his father’s struggles in Mumbai, Vicky said, “In Mumbai, my dad was willing to work as a sweeper even, because he knew that nobody in the village would get to know. My dad’s youth was full of struggles. There’s no job security in this field. While you’re working on one project, you’re wondering if you’ll find something else next.”
However, Vicky prioritised his passion over security. “My family was genuinely very happy that finally someone is going to have a stable income, job security, off days… He was so happy. He felt like his struggles had finally paid off. But I just knew that I couldn’t do a conventional job. I had an offer letter, I’d passed out with good marks. But I knew that I’d become depressed if I went ahead with it,” said the actor.
This is not the first time that Vicky has spoken about his father’s tough times. Last year, in an interview with We Are Yuvaa, Vicky revealed that his father “cried in front of them” after he was “humiliated on the sets”. Vicky said that his father tried to make him “emotionally strong” from the very beginning. Vicky told We Are Yuvaa, “He’s also been the atypical figure in the family who always tried to make us strong, emotionally. He would openly tell us, ‘I felt humiliated on set today and I came back and I cried to your mom.’ He would say that to us when we were children. And mom would tell us this, that some senior had scolded him in front of the whole set when he was just a stuntman. And he came back home and cried. So, this was never hidden from us. And he has cried in front of us.”
Sham Kaushal is known for his stunt direction and action choreography in films such as Dangal, Don, Bajirao Mastani, Padmaavat, Krrish 3 and Bajrangi Bhaijan among others.