Updated on: Nov 01, 2025 07:43 pm IST
Bollywood actor Ayushmann Khurrana reflected on his father’s expectations that drove him to excel in college and pursue acting.
Bollywood actor Ayushmann Khurrana is currently riding high on the success of his recent release, Thamma. The actor, who started his career as a VJ, made his mark in Bollywood with films like Dream Girl, Vicky Donor and many more. In a recent conversation with Pinkvilla, Ayushmann revealed that his wife, Tahira Kashyap, didn’t believe he could become an actor.
Ayushmann Khurrana on Tahira Kashyap’s reaction to his acting dreams
Ayushmann recalled the time when he and Tahira were dating and pursuing a degree in Mass Communication from Panjab University. He revealed that he had always wanted to marry her and said, “One day, she asked me, ‘What are you planning to do in life? How will you earn money?’ I told her that I wanted to be an actor. She started laughing and crying at the same time, thinking, ‘Tum actor kaise ban sakte ho shakal dekho aapni (How can you become an actor? Look at your face?)’ I was a nerd; no one would have predicted that I would become an actor just by looking at my face. Even she didn’t believe in me. I lived on a lot of self-belief.”
He also shared his father’s condition for letting him pursue acting and said, “My father put a condition that if I wanted to do arts and theatre, I had to be a topper in college. I topped my college for three years because I wanted to pursue a career in theatre. It was difficult, but he wanted something good to happen. Since I was a Shah Rukh Khan fan, I felt it was better to be an educated actor; there’s no one more intelligent than him. Following in his footsteps, I also studied Mass Communication and eventually landed in Mumbai.”
Ayushmann Khurrana’s recent and upcoming films
Ayushmann was most recently seen in Thamma. Directed by Aditya Sarpotdar, the film is the fifth instalment in the Maddock Horror Comedy Universe and also stars Rashmika Mandanna, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Faisal Malik, and Paresh Rawal in key roles. Released on Diwali, the film has so far collected ₹155.25 crore worldwide at the box office.
Up next, Ayushmann will be seen in Pati Patni Aur Woh Do, a sequel to the 2019 hit Pati Patni Aur Woh. The film also stars Sara Ali Khan, Wamiqa Gabbi, and Rakul Preet Singh, and is scheduled to release on 4 March 2026.
