Gullak star Jameel Khan was SHOCKED after moving to Mumbai: ‘People used to refer to me using words like…’

“Gullak” star Jameel Khan still remembers his father’s words when they were arguing over a white lie the elder Khan told when he was young. And they were, “You’re not going to be able to succeed in business.” What he didn’t know at the time was that his father’s words would prove prophetic and he would go on to chart a different path in Mumbai, away from the family’s thriving carpet business in Bhadohi, Uttar Pradesh.

Interestingly, he rose to fame playing Santosh Mishra, a middle-class patriarch in the popular SonyLIV series ‘Gullak’, which the actor says reflects the upbringing he and many others in India received.

“There are many people of my age, from the lower middle class and who have made their mark, for whom the show evokes a certain nostalgia… It is a show written with a lot of love, served with a lot of love, ” Khan told PTI in an interview.

“We’re in season four and it’s on par with previous seasons, if not better. It’s the love from the audience, they get on so well with the show,” the actor said about the TVF-produced show which revolves around the daily life of the Mishra family, living in a city any of Uttar Pradesh.

Khan was born into an upper-middle-class business family in Bhadohi, home to the largest industrial center of hand-knotted carpet weaving in South Asia. Like everyone else in the town, his father also worked in the same company, specializing in Persian designs. He describes it as a “simple but happy and privileged context”.

Recalling the argument with his father, the actor said: “We had a carpet business and we lived right above the workshop. One day a worker came and told my father that a sahab was asking for him… My father asked the worker to say that he was not at home. As soon as he left, I asked him, ‘Why did you lie?'” His father dismissed the incident as a business matter, but the actor stuck to his guns. “No, you did. lied!” He said.

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“My father then explained to me why he had to do it for the good of business. But I still wasn’t convinced. He then said with a laugh: “Tumse jo hai na, business nahin ho payega life mein” (“You won’t be able to do business in life”). For me it was either black or white. »

Khan, who did his schooling from Sherwood College in Nainital and completed his graduation from Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) and his master’s degree from Mumbai University, said whatever he achieved in the life is due to his parents and their upbringing, which gave him a strong sense of morality.

The move to Mumbai was a culture shock for the actor. “Raising your voice is something that is frowned upon in our country. No abusive language or “tu-tadak” (informal) at all. Then I came to Bombay, which is a very different cultural place. So, (I would be shocked) when people would refer to me using words like “tu” or “tum”… But I understood that that’s how the language is here. I talk to my kids using ‘aap’…I think everyone deserves respect, whether they’re younger or younger than you,” he said.

For many viewers who love “Gullak”, it is about Santosh Mishra, the affable and honest father stuck in a dead-end government job. But the 49-year-old’s career is punctuated by several milestones, whether it was his first feature film with Sanjay Leela. Bhansali’s “Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam” in 1999, “Baby” or his small but memorable role in “Gangs of Wasseypur”, directed by Anurag Kashyap.

Khan credits his love for theater with leading him to Mumbai, where he found a window into the world of entertainment through veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah’s Motley theater troupe.

“I have performed many plays with them, two of my favorites are ‘Manto Ismat Haazir Hain’ and ‘Katha Collage’, which changed my life. People came to know Jameel Khan, the actor, through that play and from there I was cast in films, commercials and for voiceovers. “There was a void after ‘Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam’ for the actor because he was doing theater with passion.

“I used to ignore films thinking I would only pick one up when it was good and on my terms. I will first do theater, then cinema. Theater was my first priority. When I got married, I realized that I had to take responsibility and hence I could no longer ignore films. I had to make money. I started doing more films, then OTT came along.” Then came “Gangs of Wasseypur.” Working with director Anurag Kashyap was another experience for Khan, who said he had “a lot of opportunities to act » while essaying the role of Asghar Khan, the sworn cousin of Manoj Bajpayee’s Sardar Khan.

There are many landmark performances for the actor across mediums, ‘Gullak’ being the latest.

“In films, there was this very beautiful independent film called “Loins of Punjab”. There was this advertisement for the painting, “Waah Sunil Babu, naya ghar, nayi gadi, nayi Mrs, badhiya hai”. These are the stages that will be remembered, and then there was the “Shauq badi cheez hai” commercial.

“Then, ‘Baby’, ‘Gangs of Wasseypur’, ‘Ram-Leela’…And now ‘Gullak’ is a milestone since 2019 as it is constantly present in the audience’s memory. The scope of OTT is really broad. This is also why it is an exceptional performance.”