Kadhi-chawal will get you on his good side, plus 16 other facts about Chunky Panday

1. Chunky Panday would not be called Chunky if his cousin had managed to pronounce his real name—Suyash. It was (somehow) mangled to Monkey, which evolved into ‘Chunky’, which was supposed to be ironic, considering his lithe build.
2. If he could, he would change his name to Anthony Gonsalves—the name of Amitabh Bachchan’s character in the multi-starrer Amar Akbar Anthony (1977).
3. Before getting into the movie business, Panday first wanted to be a doctor, then a pilot. He got a degree in Economics, modelled for a while, and ventured into a few small businesses.
4. He got interested in the acting business after he stepped in as a spot boy for Kishore Kumar for a show in America.
5. Chunky Panday’s emotional support “objects” are his two dogs. He believes that people live longer if they cuddle and tickle dogs.
6. Given a choice, he’d swap his finger with a camera; he confesses that he’s incessantly shooting his kids, his dogs, his wife, and himself.
7. Panday’s death-row meal is kadhi-chawal. Sindhi kadhi, Gujarati kadhi—all are welcome.
8. He once tried to name-drop himself to get into a venue—and was turned away.
9. Chunky Panday’s favourite cuss word? “Oh shiiit.”
10. Panday swears by retail therapy on a rough day. His go-to cure: buying a loud, colourful Hawaiian shirt.
11. The last thing he asked ChatGPT was: “How famous am I?” The bot had no answer.
12. These days, Panday loves playing sidekick to his famous daughter. He calls it “reverse nepotism”.
13. He, literally, cannot boil an egg.
14. He considers Govinda, Akshay Kumar, and Sajid Khan the funniest guys in Bollywood.
15. Panday low-key feels “bad” for actors today, compared to his pre-internet days when you could “commit murder and get away with it, literally”(!).
16. His favourite movie theatre memory is watching his 1988 film Khatron Ke Khiladi at Liberty cinema, where someone in the audience shouted, “Arey, Chunky Panday ko zyada maro!” during his fight scene with Dharmendra.
17. Panday, known for playing the funny guy, wants to be remembered as the action star from ’80s and ’90s ensemble hits like Tezaab and Vishwatma, a version of him he feels people—including his own kids—have forgotten.

Chunky Panday plays Shuffled with The Nod