Gurmeet Chouhdary reveals Yash Chopra asked him to go for TV before films, cited Shah Rukh Khan’s example

Gurmeet Choudhary has said that it was legendary filmmaker Yash Chopra who suggested he should take up TV projects before venturing in films. After working on the small screen for a few years, Gurmeet featured in films such as Khamoshiyan and Wajah Tum Ho in lead roles. (Also read: Gurmeet Choudhary says director once threatened to end his career for rejecting movie)

Gurmeet recalled the advice he got from Yash Chopra in a recent interview and also revealed that the filmmaker gave him the example of Shah Rukh Khan, who had acted in TV shows before he entered Bollywood. Shah Rukh had appeared in Fauji and Wagle Ki Duniya among other television series before making his film debut with Deewana (1992).

Gurmeet told Pinkvilla, “One day I got Yash ji’s number from somewhere, and I was pretty new in the industry back then. I had done some courses, and it had only been three or four months. I directly called him from a landline number, because back then mobile phone calls used to be expensive, and it was important to save money. So I called him from a landline number and he even answered the call. I told him that I am an actor, wanted to meet him, and was a fan of his. So he said, ‘Bachche aa ja Yash Raj mein (come to the YRF office, kid)’.”

He added that he went to the office and remembers the legendary filmmaker’s advice. “It is because of him that I have reached here today. I still remember his advice. He had said, ‘If you want to become a film actor, then do TV. Become such a big star in television, that producers and directors would cast you in films from there, how it had happened with Shah Rukh’. He gave me Shah Rukh Khan’s example. So that got stuck in my head, because someone like Yash Chopra was giving me that advice. Since then I took TV so seriously, worked for three to four years in the medium, and worked really hard,” he said.

Gurmeet has worked in popular TV shows including Kumkum – Ek Pyara Sa Bandhan, Geet – Hui Sabse Parayi and Punar Vivaah. He also participated in dance reality shows Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa and Nach Baliye and the adventure reality show Khatron Ke Khiladi.

Debina Bonerjee and Gurmeet featured together as Ram and Sita on the TV show Ramayan before getting married in 2011. They welcomed their first child, daughter Lianna earlier this year. They are now expecting their second child.