Long before stardom, 10-year-old SRK used to supply samosas

Actor Pankaj Kapur has shared a heartwarming memory from those days, recalling how a young SRK would help out at the NSD canteen and serve refreshments to theatre artists

Mumbai: Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan enjoys immense popularity across the world today, but his journey to the top was shaped by humble beginnings and years of hard work. Long before he became one of India’s biggest film stars, King Khan was a familiar face at Delhi’s National School of Drama (NSD), where his family had a close connection.

Now, veteran Bollywood actor Pankaj Kapur has shared a heartwarming memory from those days, recalling how a young SRK would help out at the NSD canteen and serve refreshments to theatre artists.

What Pankaj Kapur revealed about SRK

Speaking on Kindle Cast’s YouTube channel, Pankaj Kapur recalled his time at NSD in the mid-1970s and remembered seeing a young Shah Rukh around the campus.

“Those samosas were supplied by no other than Shah Rukh Khan. He was a little boy, 10 years old at that time,” Pankaj said while talking about the refreshments served to performers during theatre intervals.

The veteran actor further remembered Shah Rukh standing in the NSD canteen and helping with the food service.

“I think his uncle or father used to run the canteen at that time,” he said.

Pankaj noted that neither he nor anyone else could have imagined that the young boy serving samosas would one day become one of Bollywood’s biggest superstars. Years later, the two would share screen space in Rajiv Mehra’s 1995 film Ram Jaane, which was headlined by Shah Rukh Khan.

Shah Rukh Khan’s Connection With NSD

Shah Rukh’s father, Mir Taj Mohammed Khan, was a restaurateur in Delhi and owned a popular eatery called Khatir. Apart from managing the restaurant, he also spent much of his time running the mess at NSD.

Following his father’s death in 1981, Shah Rukh’s mother, Lateef Fatima Khan, continued to run the family business until her passing in 1990.

In an earlier interview with The Times of India in 2014, Shah Rukh spoke about his childhood memories at NSD and revealed that he would visit the institution daily after school while waiting for his sister, Shehnaz Lalarukh Khan.

“I was a very cute child and my entire childhood was spent there in the laps and roaming around with arguably India’s finest actors,” Shah Rukh had said.

Those actors included some of Indian cinema’s most respected names, such as Pankaj Kapur, Raghubir Yadav, Raj Babbar, Nadira Babbar, Naseeruddin Shah, Rohini Hattangadi and Anupam Kher. Many of them would later go on to work with Shah Rukh in films.

About Pankaj Kapur

Pankaj Kapur began his career in theatre before establishing himself as one of India’s finest actors. Over the years, he has delivered memorable performances in films such as Maqbool, Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, Ek Doctor Ki Maut, The Blue Umbrella and Jersey. He is also widely known for his television roles in Karamchand and Office Office.

SRK’s upcoming film

Meanwhile, Shah Rukh Khan is gearing up for the release of his upcoming film King. Directed by Siddharth Anand, the film features Deepika Padukone, Abhishek Bachchan and Suhana Khan in lead roles, along with Raghav Juyal, Saurabh Shukla and Arshad Warsi in key roles.

The much-awaited film is scheduled to hit theatres on December 24, 2026.