Suniel Shetty recalls his first meeting with KL Rahul; actor was surprised he and Athiya Shetty were on ‘talking terms’

The actor was on The Kapil Sharma Show to speak about India’s first MMA reality show, Kumite 1 Warrior Hunt. He also spoke about his daughter’s recent wedding to Rahul. He spoke about meeting the cricketer, not knowing that he and Athiya were already acquainted. Another ‘happy coincidence’ for the actor was that Rahul’s parents’ house in Mangalore was quite close to where he was born.

According to a report in Mid-Day, the actor recalled the first time he met Rahul, “I had the pleasure of meeting Rahul first at an airport. I was thrilled to learn that he was from Mangalore, my hometown. I was a big fan of him and was happy to see that he was doing well. When I came home and shared the news with Athiya and [wife] Mana, they didn’t say much; they just exchanged looks with each other. Later, Mana came to me and said that Athiya and Rahul [were on] talking terms.”

He added, “I was surprised that Athiya had not mentioned it to me. [At the same time], I was happy as I always told Athiya to connect with south Indian boys. Rahul’s house in Mangalore [where his parents live] is only a few kilometres away from my birthplace [Mulki]. So, this was a happy coincidence.”

Suniel will be reuniting with co-stars Akshay Kumar and Paresh Rawal for Hera Pheri 3. Earlier this week, a promo announcement shoot for the film was held in Mumbai. Paresh had shared that the film’s shoot will begin in three months and the main trio of Raju, Shyam, and Babu Bhaiyya, will travel internationally for the third film.

The actor was last seen in the Telugu film Ghani starring Varun Tej last year. He played a former boxing champion in the sports drama.