Nawazuddin Siddiqui Birthday Special: Once worked as a Watchman, now a Bollywood star

Nawazuddin Siddiqui shared about his experiences from his journey of becoming an actor from a common man. 

The 44-year-old actor stated that the idea of becoming an actor came to him when he saw a play for the first time in Vadodara, where he worked as a chemist after college.

"Our family would watch Ram Leela plays together–my first encounter with acting. My friend played Ram & seeing him left me starstruck! I imagined playing the role myself! After college, I worked in Baroda. There, I watched a play for the first time & the thought of being an actor became a dream." He said.

Nawazuddin stated that his acceptance to the National School of Drama brought him to Mumbai and that it took him nearly a month to adjust to the city of dreams. So I went where everybody with a dream of acting goes– Bombay. My parents, who were uneducated, supported me. They said I could do anything as long as I worked hard.

My first impression of Bombay was how fast it was. It took me a month to get used to the pace of life– I thought I’d never be able to match up! But slowly I joined the rat race.

Nawazuddin, who stated at the start of the story that he comes from a farming family and that he is the guiding figure for his eight siblings, shared that he had to borrow money from friends on a regular basis in order to continue his stint in Mumbai. "Financially, I wasn't well off. I would borrow money from my friends, saying I'd return them in 2 days. Two days later I would borrow money from someone else and pay the first person back. I lived in a flat with four other people - it was about survival... But my family always had my back. They constantly told me to not give up!" 

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The actor revealed that his journey to make it in Bollywood was more of a struggle than a journey. He wrote, "I worked odd jobs - sometimes as a watchman, sometimes selling coriander. I even held acting workshops! I must have gone for a 100 auditions and took up every single role that came my way, no matter how small it was. It took 12 years before I got a 'breakthrough'. It wasn't easy - the struggle was not beautiful, it was just that; a struggle."

Nawazuddin Siddiqui, who had a minor role in his first Bollywood film Sarfarosh, ended his post by summarising his success and how his hard work finally paid off: "But I did it. I went from playing an insignificant role in Munnabhai MBBS to winning a Filmfare award for my role in Lunchbox. I went from being unrecognised in Sarfarosh to being known as Ganesh Gaitonde across the nation. I went from being a watchman to becoming the 'watch me' man - and I'm nowhere near being done, so keep watching - I'm here to stay!"

Nawazuddin had previously discussed the reactions of his friends and relatives to his celebrity in an exclusive interview. He had said, "It's a feeling of satisfaction because I've proven them all wrong. When I set out, they all asked, 'kya hero banega (how can he become a hero)?' They now say 'isne toh karke dikhaya (he has done it)' when I return. I made it possible."

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"So many times I think I was wasting my time because things were just not working out," he says when asked if he ever thought about giving up. But I couldn't even go back. What would I do if I were in that situation? I've spent my whole life acting and have no experience in any other profession. I was also worried that my friends would tease me. Arrey hero banne gaya tha , Wapas laut aaya, (he had gone to become an actor and has returned with nothing).

Nawazuddin Siddiqui is best known for his roles in Gangs of Wasseypur, Badlapur, The Lunchbox, Raman Raghav 2.0, Manto, and Thackeray. Photograph, in which he co-stars with Sanya Malhotra, will be released in theatres on March 15.