TV actor Nasirr Khan remembers legendary father Johnny Walker

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“My father was a perfect example of having it all, letting it go and still having it all!” reminisces actor Nasirr Khan, son of the legendary comic Johnny Walker.

Celebrities are often associated with a rich and lavish lifestyle, but people often fail to see the other side. The well-known television actor says that he too has been through rough patches in life. “In 2014, six years after leaving the industry when I was the Head of Operations for a US company, everything was going good. Then suddenly the entire set-up just crashed overnight and I was left with nothing. In those six years, I had disassociated myself with the industry, and everything had changed a lot. So, when I came back, I had to rebuild my name, my work and myself from scratch. I had never struggled when I started out in the mid-’90’s because work just happened, but from 2016, it has been an uphill task for me.”

He goes on, “Whatever I achieved in the ‘90’s and early 2000s, I got it all back by sheer hard work and without any help or support from my family or friends. It’s been the same since 2016. I have given hundreds of auditions and been rejected in practically all of them. But I did not go to industry insiders to ask for work. I believed ‘If I could do it then, I can do it again’. It has been a grueling struggle but by the grace of God, the past one year has been kind. And now the newer generation is recognizing my work and me. For the past few months I’ve been making my rounds, socializing and meeting people. Many of them are like, ‘Where did you vanish?’ It feels like being back home on the set.”

Talking about the pressure to keep up with the public image, Nasirr says that one needs to handle such things well. The best thing, according to him, is to lead a simple life. “Don’t live beyond your capacities, so that even during crisis somehow you can make it through, like I did. I saw the simplicity in my parents. My father was a very big name but a very simple person. So when I faced that crisis for a few years, I never gave up. I am a headstrong person with a positive attitude. I realized my mistakes and took it upfront, accepted them, faced them, corrected them, changed myself and moved on. Today, people have turned luxuries into necessities. If only they know the difference, living will become easy.”

With family and other responsibilities to take care of, a financial crunch can also take a toll on mental health. Many faced it especially during the lockdown.  “I am lucky because of my family. They have stood by me through thick and thin. I never made them my weakness but my strength. In the pandemic when everything was shut, I opened myself up. I took those two years to hone my skills, I learnt editing, titling and have made some 100 music tracks, I even shot a short film. I did interviews on my YouTube channel and for the past few months have been actively making reels. At 53, I’m living like a 23 year-old. My father has set a great example.”

Johnny Walker, the legendary comedian known for several iconic performances in films like Kagaz Ke Phool, C.I.D., Naya Daur and Anand among many others, was also the first actor to insist on no work on Sundays. He would also be a strict disciplinarian, and would attend late-night parties that were important for a short while, after taking dinner at home!