Starting today, as we gear up for Mother’s Day on May 12, we embark on a journey to share never-before-heard stories about Bollywood stars and their mothers. Our special series kicks off with a glimpse into the life of actor Varun Sharma’s mother, Veena Sharma. Not only has she been a steadfast support for him, but she also boasts a remarkable career of her own. With a master’s degree in arts, Veena served as a fine arts lecturer for an impressive 38 years.

Reflecting on her tenure, she reminisces, “I began my journey as a teacher in 1977 and retired in 2015 as the Head of the Department.”

Raising Varun and his sister as a single mother following the demise of her husband in 2005, Veena faced criticism from family members when Varun expressed his desire to pursue a career in Mumbai. 

Recounting those pivotal moments, she says, “After completing his 12th grade, we visited family in Chandigarh for a two-day vacation. It was during a talent show there, where Rubina Dilaik also participated, that I witnessed Varun’s talent and resolved to support him in his passion.”

Varun, acknowledging his mother’s unwavering support, remarks, “My mother has played every role in my life. Her faith in me, enabling me to pursue my dreams in a new city, has been fundamental to my journey. Having her and my sister by my side during my move to Mumbai was my greatest strength as I embarked on this acting journey.”

Veena expresses her gratitude for her son’s gesture of purchasing a house for her in Mumbai: “I relocated to Mumbai to be closer to my children in 2016, initially renting a place. But in 2022, Varun bought that (same) house for me, and it will always remain truly special. Additionally, he fulfilled my lifelong dream by arranging for me to meet Shah Rukh Khan!”

I asked Varun to promise me that he would follow his passion with dedication and honesty and would not fall into other traps (when he moved to Mumbai). He made me proud by staying true to his word.  

She embodies discipline and punctuality, virtues I strive to emulate in my personal and professional lives. Her optimistic outlook and ability to find solutions even in the face of adversity are traits I admire.

In the last nine years, Varun Sharma has explored various shades of comedy through some prominent films that he’s been a key part of. And yet, he’s not done with the comedy genre yet. While he’s more than willing to explore other elements of entertainment, he continues to be a hardcore comedy loyalist. The Fukrey actor believes, “It’s a genre that can never reach a saturation point.” In a chat with BT, he explores what makes humour a serious business and more. Excerpts:

Every filmmaker is different and their style and approach towards humour or comedy are also unique to them. As actors, our job is to tap into their vision and make it come alive. The basics for an actor will always be the same. But you have to find your rhythm and your connection with the material in hand. You rely on the same set of tools but in varying degrees, depending on what a filmmaker wants. I think directors have a big role to play in how a comedy shapes up. It’s their medium, they know best what they want, and they will always extract the best from you. I’m fortunate to have been able to adapt to so many different directors and their styles of humour — like Mrigdeep Singh Lamba, Rohit Shetty and Nitesh Tiwari — they’re all so unique. Working with each one opens up a new door to learn and grow.

When people say that ‘Comedy is serious and tough business’, it is true. Comedy looks easy, but it’s extremely tough to make people smile and laugh. Log aasani se nahi hanste. Even in our everyday lives, things have changed so much. Humour is changing with the times. The jokes, punchlines and timing that worked five years ago won’t work now, and what works today won’t work two years down. Because our sense of humour and what really puts a smile on our face or brings out a chuckle or two is rapidly changing. We have a different attention span, patience levels and slang. Films often try to adapt from real life it could be characters, gags or instances. They are drawn from something or someone that exists. Spontaneity is important, but I believe in preparing a lot as well. You have to get your structure perfectly; it can be enhanced spontaneously. Comedy as a genre works when people work in tandem. Comedy is not a one-man show. Woh ek akela aadmi aapko nahi hansa sakta. A punch becomes funny because of the reaction someone gives. It gets enhanced with the background music or the scene’s treatment on screen. The entire team has to be in sync for that to work.

I love comedy and I genuinely love to make people laugh. It’s a blessing to be able to do that and to go into a theatre and watch people reacting with laughter at a punch you delivered. Believe me, I used to do serious stuff like Anton Chekov’s plays in theatre. Auditioning for Fukrey was the first time that I tried comedy. When I started shooting, I started getting cold feet. I wasn’t sure if people would laugh. I have to credit Mrigdeep Singh Lamba for drawing out Choocha from me. When I saw people laughing in the theatres, I started crying because I was so overwhelmed. Koi khush hua mujhe dekh ke, koi hansa mere punch pe. So, even though I want to explore other genres, I will keep exploring comedy, too. So many people have warned me that I might get typecast. But I don’t want to jump into another genre unless I am excited with the content offered. I’m happy exploring what I love comedy. This genre has given me everything I have today. It would be unfair ki isko rok ke kuch aur attempt karun for the heck of it. And who says there’s only so much to comedies? I’m still learning. I feel that I don’t know if I can act. The day I start believing that I can act, I’ll be in deep trouble. As for trying something different, hopefully, next year, I will be doing something very different from what I’ve done so far.

Honestly, as an industry person, I want everything to work. It’s important. Comedy as a genre doesn’t have a saturation point really. Like horror-comedy was not a genre that was explored much until a few years ago with Stree. It worked. It was an experiment that got mainstream acceptance. To me, it doesn’t make a difference. I feel we should do our work with complete shiddat, and not overthink these things because there’s no guarantee of what will work in future and why. Art is subjectively loved by people.

When people say things like, ‘Fukrey toh cakewalk hai, tumhare toh blood mein hai,’ I feel like telling them, it’s not that! Fukrey is the closest to my heart, and Choocha is a character that laid the foundation of my career here. The fraternal acceptance, more work, my house, my expenses, my life it’s a gift of that character. This film is the starting line of so many people’s careers. It’s a special feeling to revisit that space. When we started out, I remember all of us were so raw, and some of us so inexperienced. We were just happy that we would get to see ourselves on the big screen. Nine years later, we have become more aware, experienced, mature and evolved. I had to unlearn everything to be able to do Choocha again.

I have an emotional attachment to the role. It’s a part of my life and my everything. For five years after my debut, people didn’t know my real name. In the last four years, Sexa from Chhichhore is the only other name that people have known me as. Otherwise, I’m Varun for them. I often tell my mother that she’s probably the only mother in the world who is proud ki unka beta ek fukra aur chhichhora hai. I don’t think and I don’t know if I can outgrow Choocha’s character. It’s too close to me.

Varun Sharma whose mother, Veena Gulshan, retired as a Fine Arts teacher from a renowned college in Jalandhar is now working towards mobilising other retired teachers in Punjab. “Being a teacher is not an easy job and it's sad that they have to subsist on such small pensions after working so hard. A few of my childhood friends and I have pledged to support two families of retired teachers in Punjab. We will sort out their monthly expenses,“ informs Varun who will be next seen in Dinesh Vijan's Raabta. “At an age when they should relax, they are forced to do odd jobs like baby-sitting. All I am trying to do is to help them and spread awareness about the problem,“ asserts the actor, adding that he visits Punjab once a few months to spend time with the teachers and their families. “I love spending time with elders. They talk about their life experiences and there is so much to learn from them,“ says the Fukrey actor whose mother retired last year after 38 years of service and now lives with him in Mumbai. “She doesn't say much but she appreciates my decision. I know she is proud of me,“ he smiles.

Varun Sharma, 24, is simple, shy and affectionate. He has had a pampered upbringing and can get carried away easily, but he is also completely focused and hard-working. He is emotional, but shies from showing his emotions. He is religious and wants to make his mother proud. Ahead of his upcoming romantic drama comedy Dolly Ki Doli, he talks to Bombay Times about the warm Arbaaz Khan, why he misses his father and what makes him remain focused in life. Excerpts:

Let's talk about your background?
I am a Punjabi from Jalandhar. I did my schooling from The Lawrence School ­ Sanawar in Kasauli. I remember I was very young when I started dancing on my bed watching the song Yeh Kaali Kaali Aankhen from Baazigar and I would tell my parents that I wanted to get into acting. But my parents thought it was a kid's craze that I would get over within a month or two. Sanjay Dutt is an alumnus of Sanawar. On our Founder's Day, he was coming as the Chief Guest to my school. There was a play that was going to be taking place for him, so I requested my teachers that just make me do something in the play. I won't even mind standing just behind, but I want to act and be on stage. They put me as an extra standing on stage and while I didn't get to meet Sanjay Dutt and was just running behind him, I had decided that bas yeh hi karna hai mujhe. Post Class X, due to some family reasons, I had to come back to Jalandhar. I then went to Chandigarh to finish my graduation in filmmaking from there and did a course in Media Entertainment and Film Technology. I also started doing theatre and performed plays nationally. I thought the closest to acting would be casting, so post graduation, I shifted to Mumbai to work with casting director Nandini Shrikent and assisted her in Talaash, Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani and many other films.

How did you get Fukrey?
It's such a coincidence that the first film office I visited in Mumbai, was of Excel Entertainment with Nandini who was casting for Talaash. I did not know anyone from the film industry even remotely. I was with Nandini for over a year-and-a-half. She knew I wanted to act and wherever possible, she would even take my auditions for a role. She was very supportive when I wanted to go for auditions and she asked me to audition for Fukrey. When I got the confirmation that I had been chosen for Fukrey, it was the happiest moment of my life. I called up my mom in Jalandhar and she said, 'Meri toh tapasya hogayee poori.' After that my life changed. Wherever I go, I am still called Choocha. I consider it my victory that I am known by my character name and I now hope that it will change to Manjot or Chaddha sahab after Dolly Ki Doli. I am extremely grateful to Nandini, as it is because of her that I got exposed to films and she allowed me to audition even when I was working there. And then Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani, as it takes a lot to give a chance to a newcomer and put your money behind him. Ritesh sir and Mrighdeep Singh Lamba sir really believed in me.

What is the family reason you left Sanawar after Class X for?
I lost my father. He had diabetes and high BP and so he died of kidney failure. My mother wanted me to come back, not because of financial reasons, but because she felt insecure about me and she felt that I should be at home. I had always been a very pampered child. He was into export-import of tools, while my mother was a lecturer of Fine Arts. She is a painter. So it's in my blood to be artistic, even though my handwriting is so bad that I can't even sign autographs.

Who do you love the most in the world?
My entire world consists of just my mother and my younger sister, who now lives with me in Mumbai. My mom has done too much for me. It's not easy for a single mother to send her child to Mumbai alone, where everything is so uncertain. She knew that I won't have a fixed salary on a monthly basis. My father died in 2005. It was not easy for her to live alone in Jalandhar from that time. But I am happy that my mother is retiring this year and will then be moving to Mumbai to live with me. Just today, I have bought a new car and my mom is in Mumbai visiting me, so it's a big day.

Did you make friends working on Dolly Ki Doli?
Pulkit is a dear friend. Arbaaz sir also, I never knew that he is so humble. I can now just go talk to him about anything, even personal career-related stuff. Arbaaz sir selected me. I have grown up watching his family's films. I was all excited when I got the first call from him. It was a really big thing. He makes you so comfortable and gives you such a family vibe on set and would even sometimes send us food from his house. He has pampered us so much on the set that it will be hard for me to shift out and work in another place.

Is there someone you really aspire to work with?
With Salman Khan. I was studying in Chandigarh when they were shooting for London Dreams. That was the first time I saw him. I was asked to do a cameo, where I played a dulha. He saw Fukrey and hugged me. He is someone I would love to share screen space with.

Did comedy happen to you by design?
It happened accidentally. I never thought that I could make people laugh.

Special moments in your life?
When I got Fukrey, I called my mother and there was a beautiful two-minute silence. There was no emotion. In Punjabi I just said, 'Pairi pauna.' Then when I got my first award was a special moment. She felt very nice when Bombay Times chose me as the Best Actor In A Comic Role and she has kept the cutting. Every actor comes into Mumbai hoping to one day see themselves on the cover of Bombay Times. I will be framing this interview of mine.

Do you miss your father?
Of course. My dad too was self-made and yet, he gave his family such a good quality of life. I remember after the screening of Fukrey, my mother and sister hugged me after watching it, but I really missed my dad. He always supported me in becoming an actor. He always said, 'Whatever your dream is, follow that.' That day I just wanted to hug him and tell him, 'Dad, it's happened.' While driving back home, my sister and mom sat at the back in the car and I cried, sitting in the front. We reached home and I went down on the pretext of wanting to walk in my society and while walking, I talked to myself and cried.

What now?
We have seen tough times. My mother has stayed alone in Jalandhar for a long time and has done too much for me. Now, it's happy times. I shifted to Mumbai in 2011. I now want to work really hard to make my family happy. My mom has always been with me. For instance, when I wanted to come to Mumbai, everyone would say, 'Don't send the boy alone. Why are you sending him?' But she said, 'No beta, this is something you wanted to do for years, I am giving you the chance to go there and do that. Just remember that you can do that and have your share of fun and chilling and all that, but that it takes a lot of courage to send you there, so work towards that.' Whenever I feel that I am not focusing, I remind myself of what she told me and am back to working harder. Now, when I go back to Jalandhar, kids come and see me before they go to school and my relatives will drive seven hours just to see me. That gives her a lot of happiness. When I came to Mumbai, I did not get a call back after any of my first five auditions. It was scary and it still haunts me. I broke down and would then talk to myself. I want to do a lot of films. I really want to make my mother and sister roam the entire world.