Media365
3 min readMumbaiOct 4, 2026 03:09 PM IST
Jackie Shroff recently opened up about playing the iconic Chunnilal in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Devdas, revealing that the role came to him only after several other actors had turned it down.
During an interview with Republic Bharat, Jackie recalled his Devdas days after a woman in the audience told him that she had watched the film five times. Reacting to her response, the actor said, “Nobody was taking that role because Shah Rukh Khan saab was essaying Devdas’ character. To those whom the film had been offered, they said, ‘My character’s name isn’t even there…Devdas is his name.’ So, when nobody accepts the role, it comes to me, and I said, ‘Yes, I’ll do this role.’ Madhuri (Dixit) ji is there, and I am the king of her character’s (Chandramukhi) brothel. Why shouldn’t I sit there? I said, ‘Very good’ and asked what’s the second thing that I have. They (filmmaker) said ‘There is one song for you and these are the dialogues.’ I read the dialogues, and I said, ‘Even if my role comes during the interval, it won’t matter to me because I am seen merely by standing.’ And, I was seen in Devdas.”
He asked the female fan, “You also saw it. I was visible, right?” Continuing further, Jackie said, “When nobody accepts the role, they come to me, and I don’t mind.”
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During the conversation, Jackie Shroff credited actor-filmmaker Dev Anand with spotting him and offering him a junior artiste’s role in Swami Dada (1982), in which he played one of Shakti Kapoor’s henchmen. Mithun Chakraborty played the lead.
Shroff also expressed gratitude to filmmaker Subhash Ghai for giving him his breakthrough as a leading man with Hero (1983). He credited the film’s iconic flute theme with playing a significant role in establishing him as a star and thanked Lord Krishna for blessing both him and his son, Tiger Shroff. The tune was later reworked for a new generation in Tiger’s debut film Heropanti (2014)
Jackie Shroff was last seen in The Great Grand Superhero. He is awaiting the release of his horror film Kaali Kheti on October 23, 2026.
