‘Ayush bhai told me to start from scratch when I began my career’
Having a star sibling in the same profession is bound to make way for comparisons, which become totally unavoidable at times. Mention this to Aparshakti Khurana, and he feels there is no question of any comparison between him and elder brother, actor Ayushmann Khurrana. “We look similar because we are siblings, just that,” he laughs, asserting that there are many who do not compare them.
Talking about his brother, Aparshakti explains, “Ayush bhai and I are way too different. As Chanakya says ‘There can only be comparisons between two equals’. So, I need to be on an equal platform with him first [in order] to be compared. He is much more disciplined as an actor and in real life, too.”
However, Aparshakti doesn’t shy away from admitting that Ayushmann has guided him in Bollywood, though that never meant referring him to filmmakers. “Ayush bhai would never call up a producer or director to say that ‘cast Apar in the film’. He would rather come back and tell me that in case I get something like that, how I am supposed to do it...Thanks to him I don’t fall into the ambit of nepotism. I neither wanted to take that route nor would he have wanted that,” states the actor, known for films such as Dangal (2016), Badrinath Ki Dulhania (2017) and the recently released Stree.
He also shares that Ayushmann wanted him to create his own place in the industry. “When he shifted to Mumbai, he started from scratch and [made his debut] in a very different space. So, he told me that I’ll also need to start from scratch. And I completely respect his point of view, so does he,” says Aparshakti.