Junaid Khan, son of actor Aamir Khan, made his debut in the Hindi film industry with ‘Maharaj’, a social drama that was released on Netflix on Friday night. The Yash Raj Films project is directed by Siddharth P Malhotra and produced by Aditya Chopra, and stars Junaid in the role of the real-life 19th century social reformer Karsandas Mulji.
Revealing how the film was an unconventional choice as a newcomer, Junaid told news agency PTI, "I don't know about it being an unconventional (debut) because YRF is a big banner and Sid sir wanted me (in the film). The story is inherently very dramatic. I have been doing theatre in Mumbai since 2017. Sid sir asked me to come and test for this film. I didn't think of it as conventional or unconventional.”
For those caught unaware, the film is based on an 1862 libel case involving Mulji and a Vaishnavite religious leader. Also starring Jaideep Ahlawat, Sharvari, and Shalini Pandey, the film is based on Saurabh Shah's Gujarati novel of the same name.
Junaid, who studied at the Los Angeles-based American Academy of Dramatics and Arts for three years, interestingly mentioned how his father Aamir knew about his choice to become an actor for almost a decade. However, they did not majorly discussed their debut project. "Film ke baare mein itna discussion nahi hua Papa se'. It is not his film and he is busy with his work. Sid sir and Adi sir showed him the film. He liked it and had some suggestions. They took some of it and didn't take the others.He would normally give advice if you have specific questions for him. But beyond that, he does not get too much into our lives. He lets us be. If you have a specific question, then he is very helpful actually,” Junaid further added.
Moving ahead, he is now in Delhi shooting for a project. Discussing his upcoming projects, Junaid shared, “I don't know how much I should talk about those films because producers haven't announced them yet but one is being made by AKP and another by Phantom Films. For now, there are these two projects and then we will see. I am supposed to be on stage in September. I keep myself busy. I have the year pretty packed.”
