Auto rides to school, cutting down on expenses when dad's films didn’t work: Varun Dhawan on his childhood

Bollywood actor Varun Dhawan, son of filmmaker David Dhawan, may enjoy a luxurious lifestyle today, but he recently shared that his early years were rooted in a lower-middle-class upbringing filled with more love than money. He also recalled commuting to school by auto and tightening household expenses when his father’s films didn’t perform well.

Varun Dhawan on his childhood

In a recent episode of Be A Man, Yaar!, Varun opened up about his childhood, remembering how his father worked tirelessly to build a career. He said, "Mujhe bachpan mein pyaara bahut mila as compared to wealth (I got more love in childhood than wealth). Because we were not very well-to-do as we became later. We were very lower middle class because my dad’s career hadn’t taken off to that level."


He added that financial constraints never affected him deeply, even as he spoke about going to school in an auto. He said, “Aap zameen pe sula lo yaa bed pe (Make me sleep on bed or floor), it didn’t matter. Papa toh ghar pe hote hi nahi the (Papa wasn't at home much). He was working round the clock doing 2 movies at a time. Mumma keh deti thi yeh khaana jo tum khaa rahe ho yeh papa kaam kar rahe hain isliye khaa rahe ho, aise dialogues sunane mil jaate the. Yaa koi film nahi chali toh Dad ki yeh film nahi chali, ab aage pata nahi kya karenge so you have to cut down on your expenses (Mum used to say, ‘The food you’re eating is because your father is working and earning for it,’ so we often got to hear dialogues like that. Or if one of his films didn’t do well, it would be like, ‘Your dad’s film hasn’t worked, and now we don’t know what he’ll do next, so you’ll have to cut down on your expenses).”

David Dhawan’s journey in films

David Dhawan began his career as an editor with the 1984 film Saaransh before turning director. He made his directorial debut with Taaqatwar (1989), starring Sanjay Dutt and Govinda. His big breakthrough came with Aankhen (1993), after which he delivered a string of successful comedies such as Biwi No.1, Coolie No.1, Raja Babu, Hero No.1, and Partner. Over the years, he has directed nearly 45 films.

Varun started out as an assistant director before being launched by Karan Johar in Student of the Year. He quickly rose to fame and went on to deliver hits like Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania, Badrinath Ki Dulhania, Badlapur, and Main Tera Hero.

Upcoming film

The father-son duo are now gearing up for their next film, Hai Jawaani Toh Ishq Hona Hai, which also stars Mrunal Thakur and Pooja Hegde, along with Mouni Roy and Rohit Saraf in key roles.

The film was initially slated for a June 4 release but has now been postponed to June 12 to avoid a box office clash with Yash’s Toxic.