15 Indian Actors Who Had Completely Different Careers Before Getting Into The Movies

    Did you know that Akshay Kumar worked as a chef, waiter, and a jewellery seller? 😳

    Mugdha Kusray
    by Mugdha Kusray

    BuzzFeed Contributor

    1. Ranveer Singh

    Ranveer Singh poses in front of a car
    Prodip Guha / Getty Images

    Ranveer Singh graduated from Indiana University, Bloomington and was a copywriter at Ogilvy for a brief period of time before debuting in the Yash Raj film, Band Baaja Baaraat. 

    2. Nawazuddin Siddiqui

    Nawazuddin Siddiqui posing
    ALBERTO PIZZOLI / AFP via Getty Images

    Nawazuddin Siddiqui worked as a chemist in Vadodara for about a year, after which he joined the National School of Drama. And, well, the rest is history. 

    3. Taapsee Pannu

    Taapsee Pannu posing
    Kevin Winter / Getty Images for TIFF

    Having graduated from Guru Tegh Bahadur Institute of Technology, Taapsee Pannu landed a software engineering job and also developed an app called "FontSwap". She was then selected as a model for Channel V's Get Gorgeous and has also been in various commercials, which led to her acting career.

    4. Parineeti Chopra

    Parineeti Chopra photographed with sunglasses in her hands
    SUJIT JAISWAL / AFP via Getty Images

    Parineeti Chopra was an ace student and has a triple honours degree in Business, Finance, and Economics. She was a public relations consultant for Yash Raj Films, after which she debuted in the film, Ladies vs Ricky Bahl.

    5. Boman Irani

    A bespectacled Boman Irani smiles and poses with a thumbs up
    Jim Spellman / Getty Images

    Boman Irani was a waiter and room service attendant at the Taj Mahal Palace & Tower for two years. He also took care of his mother's bakery and namkeen shop, selling snacks and tea. He then became a photographer and sold sports pictures, before starring in advertisements. 

    6. Akshay Kumar

    Akshay Kumar smiles with his hands folded
    Daniele Venturelli / Getty Images for The Red Sea International Film Festival

    Akshay Kumar worked a myriad of jobs — he was a waiter, chef, jewellery seller, and martial arts trainer. He also was an assistant to photographer Jayesh Sheth and a background dancer, before landing his debut film.

    7. Sayani Gupta

    Sayani Gupta posing
    Afp Contributor / AFP via Getty Images

    Sayani Gupta was a part of an infrastructure research firm and worked in marketing and sales. She, however, was always drawn towards theatre and joined the The Film and Television Institute of India, Pune, where she specialised in acting.

    8. Randeep Hooda

    Randeep Hooda posing
    Clemens Bilan / Getty Images

    Randeep Hooda worked at a car wash and as a waiter at a Chinese restaurant in Australia, while pursuing his bachelor's and master's degrees. He also worked in the marketing team of an airline company, before being cast in the film, Monsoon Wedding.

    9. Amitabh Bachchan

    Amitabh Bachchan smiles
    Nick Harvey / WireImage

    Amitabh Bachchan, after finishing his studies, applied for a job at the All India Radio — for which he was rejected. He was then a business executive at Bird & Co. in Calcutta and dabbled in theatre, before debuting as a voice actor in the 1969 film, Bhuvan Shome.

    10. Bhumi Pednekar

    Bhumi, wearing a brocade dress, poses with hands folded
    Hindustan Times / Hindustan Times via Getty Images

    Bhumi Pednekar joined Yash Raj Films as an assistant director and went on to become a casting director for six years, after which she debuted in the 2015 film, Dum Laga Ke Haisha.

    11. Rajnikanth

    A bespectacled Rajinikanth is photographed
    Prodip Guha / Getty Images

    As unbelievable as it sounds, Rajnikanth was a coolie, carpenter, and a bus conductor! He also participated in a lot of theatre and began his film career with the 1975 movie, Apoorva Raagangal.

    12. John Abraham

    John smiles and does a thumbs up
    Prodip Guha / Getty Images

    John, an MBA graduate, worked in an advertising agency and then had a modelling career. He then debuted with the 2003 film, Jism.

    13. Pankaj Tripathi

    Pankaj Tripathi, with hands folded, looks away from the camera
    Ryan Lim / AFP via Getty Images

    Pankaj Tripathi helped his father as a farmer till he was in the 11th standard. After graduating from the Institute of Hotel Management, Hajipur, he also had a brief gig as a chef in Patna. Deciding to pursue his acting career, he then joined the National School of Drama.

    14. Ayushmann Khurrana

    Ayushmann posing while wearing sunglasses and a chequered suit
    Prodip Guha / Getty Images

    Ayushmann's first job was as a radio jockey with BIG FM, Delhi. He entered showbiz through many MTV shows and anchoring reality shows such as India's Got Talent.

    15. Riteish Deshmukh

    Riteish Deshmukh posing
    Sujit Jaiswal / AFP via Getty Images

    Riteish Deshmukh was an architect and practiced at an architectural firm overseas, before debuting in the film, Tujhe Meri Kasam, in 2003.