From Assistant Director To Co-Stars: 5 Bollywood Duos With A Perfect Full-Circle Journey

Before
lighting
up
the
screens,
our
Bollywood
actors
have
kickstarted
their
journey
behind
the
cameras.
They
stepped
into
films
as
assistant
directors,
working
behind
the
lens
for
renowned
actors,
and
a
few
years
down
the
line,
they
marked
a
full-circle
moment
by
sharing
the
screen
space
with
them.
Before
they
revved
up
themselves
to
face
the
camera,
the
actors
took
a
deep
dive
to
understand
the
craft
behind
the
camera
first.
Here
are
5
Bollywood
pairs
who
marked
a
major
full-circle
moment.

Varun
Dhawan
&
Shah
Rukh
Khan

Varun
Dhawan
worked
as
an
assistant
director
for
Shah
Rukh
Khan’s
unforgettable
film
My
Name
is
Khan
in
2010,
and
later
he
ventured
into
acting
with
his
big
debut,
Student
of
the
Year
in
2012.
In
2015,
Varun
marked
one
of
his
biggest
collaborations
with
Shah
Rukh
Khan
in
Dilwale,
becoming
a
co-lead
male
star
and
winning
hearts
with
his
breezy
portrayal.

Ranbir
Kapoor
–
Aishwarya
Rai
Bachchan

Ranbir
Kapoor,
before
becoming
one
of
the
most
celebrated
actors,
worked
as
an
assistant
director
in
Aa
Ab
Laut
Chalen
(1999),
starring
Aishwarya
Rai
Bachchan.
After
establishing
a
strong
footing
with
films
like
Rockstar
and
Yeh
Jawaani
Hai
Deewani,
Ranbir
marked
a
full
circle
with
Ae
Dil
Hai
Mushkil,
marking
his
return
with
Aishwarya
Rai
in
2016.

Samara
Tijori
–
Bhumi
Satish
Pednekkar

Samara
Tijori
has
worked
on
the
screens
in
Bob
Biswas
and
Masoom.
But
before
she
appeared
on
the
screens,
she
worked
as
an
assistant
director
in
Bhumi
Satish
Pednekkar
starrer
Bhoot:
Part
One:
The
Haunted
Ship.
And
now,
she’s
gearing
up
for
the
release
of
her
upcoming
series,
Daldal,
which
brings
her
together
with
Bhumi
Pednekkar.

Shanaya
Kapoor
–
Janhvi
Kapoor

Before
casting
a
spell
of
love
with
Aankhon
Ki
Gustaakhiyan,
Shanaya
Kapoor
worked
as
an
assistant
director
in
Janhvi
Kapoor’s
Gunjan
Saxena:
The
Kargil
Girl
in
2020.
Later
in
the
first
season
of
Fabulous
Lives
of
Bollywood
Wives,
Shanaya
shared
the
screen
space
with
Janhvi
Kapoor,
marking
a
full-circle
moment
in
her
rising
career.

Hrithik
Roshan
–
Shah
Rukh
Khan

Before
becoming
the
celebrated
Greek
God
of
Bollywood,
Hrithik
Roshan
worked
as
an
assistant
director
for
the
iconic
film
Karan
Arjun
(1995),
starring
Shah
Rukh
Khan
and
Salman
Khan.
Later
in
2001,
he
made
it
big
enough
to
share
the
screen
space
with
King
Khan
in
Kabhi
Khushi
Kabhie
Gham,
headlining
the
film
as
the
co-lead.

Though
these
actors
started
off
as
assistant
directors,
their
return
collaboration
with
those
selective
actors
surely
marked
a
full-circle
moment
in
their
careers.