Chunky Panday on Ananya Panday’s Filmfare win: ‘I had tears in my eyes because I just couldn’t believe it’

Ananya Panday’s actor father Chunky Panday said he was overjoyed when Ananya was nominated and literally started crying when she won it.

Ananya Panday bagged the Filmfare Best Debut award for her performance in Student of the Year 2 on Saturday in Assam but her actor father, actor Chunky Panday couldn’t make it to the event.

The latter is, however, happy and proud that his daughter has done what he couldn’t do in 34 years.

Talking about how he reacted to Ananya’s win, Chunky told Spotboye in an interview, “In 34 years of my career, I have had 4 nominations for films like Tezaab, Aankhen, Housefull and Apna Sapna Money Money but I’ve never won a Filmfare award. So when Ananya was nominated I was overjoyed. And last night, when she won it, I literally started crying. I had tears in my eyes because I just couldn’t believe it. Obviously she deserved it.”

He revealed how Ananya had been practising the win since her childhood. “I saw a little clip of Bhavna just hugging Ananya and giving her a solid kiss. She was also too excited. You know I have never won that award but my daughter, she had been practicing it since she was young. She used to go in front of the mirror and practice that she’s won the Filmfare. And now, the award has finally come to my house,” he said.

Sometime back, appearing on film critic Rajeev Masand’s show, the newcomers roundtable, Ananya had equated struggle to not appearing in Dharma movie. She was heavily trolled for it. She had said, “I have always wanted to be an actor. Just because my dad has been an actor, I will never say no to an opportunity to act. My dad has never been in a Dharma film, he never went on Koffee With Karan. So it’s not as easy as people say. Everyone has their own journey and their own struggle.”

Talking about Chunky’s struggle in Bollywood, she had said, “When SOTY 2 got delayed by a year, my dad actually didn’t even congratulate me till the film released because that’s how fickle the industry is. That’s how dispensable people are. Anything can happen, it can get shelved, it can release after years and he knows that. Mine has been a lot of personal experience, I have seen my dad go through so many things that I don’t take anything too seriously. I overcompensate sometimes. I am so scared that people may say that ‘oh you are taking things too lightly’ so I will come extra early to places.”

Ananya will now be seen in Ali Abbas Zafar’s co-production, Khaali Peeli. At the Filmfsre Awards night, she appeared in a black and yellow (read kaali peeli) combination for the event. She is cast opposite Ishaan Khatter in the film which scheduled to hit theatres on June 12.