Before becoming popular with the role of JK Talpade in The Family Man, Sharib Hashmi He experienced a 15-year struggle filled with financial difficulties, uncertainty and emotional despair.Speaking to Haterrfly, Sharib and his wife Nasreen Hashmi opened up about the difficult years they went through when the actor left a steady job at MTV to pursue acting full-time.
“If he had said no, I would have continued my work”
When Sharib revealed that he earned Rs 25,000 a month while working for MTV in the early 2000s, he decided to pursue his dream of becoming an actor.“It was a very difficult decision,” he shared.The actor admitted that he could never have taken a risk without the support of his wife, whom he married in 2003. The couple had already become parents and had also bought a house in Mumbai on loan.“If he had said no, I would have continued to live that life where there was nothing but work,” Sharib said.Nasreen, however, said she always believed in her talent and wanted her to follow her passion.“I was very confident in his talent. He worked very hard, and I wanted to help him. If you’re happy, do it,” he said.
“I sold my jewelry little by little”
The struggle, however, lasted much longer than the family expected.Nasreen revealed that over the years, their savings had completely dried up, forcing them to sell almost everything they owned.“I sold my jewelry little by little. We couldn’t keep up with our house either, so we had to sell it. Then I also sold the house I inherited,” he said.He added that every time they thought things were finally getting better, another obstacle would appear.Sharib, who also wrote and starred in MTV Bakra, made his film debut with a small role in Slumdog Millionaire. However, despite the success of the Oscar-winning film, work opportunities were limited for several years.
‘We had zero money’
Recalling one of the lowest phases of his life, Sharib revealed that there came a point when they had absolutely no money left.“At one point we had zero money, not even enough to survive another day,” he said.The actor recalled sitting outside a mall wondering who he could call for help in times of crisis.Fortunately, help came through an old colleague at MTV who offered him a writing job for the Shah Rukh Khan-hosted reality show Zor Ka Jhatka.“Every time I hit my lowest point, somehow some work or help would come along and we would manage to survive,” Sharib said.
Food supplies in credit and emotional breakdowns
Nasreen also spoke about the emotional and financial struggles the family faced during those years.One of Sharib’s childhood friends, who worked at a grocery store, said he would continue to deliver supplies even though they couldn’t afford to pay.“We may not have had any money, but we still survived on matar paneer,” he joked.The couple ended up owing their friend about Rs 1 lakh, but instead of demanding repayment, he encouraged them to continue taking what they needed.For Nasreen, however, the most painful moment was when Sharib began to question her decision to quit her job.“At one point he was very disappointed and asked me why I let him quit his job. He said if I had stopped him, this crisis would not have happened,” he recalled.Nasreen said she was deeply moved by the statement and it reminded her that the family chose to protect her dream together.“There should be no regrets,” he told her.
‘Give me two more years’
Another difficult phase came when the couple struggled to pay their children’s school fees.Nasreen admitted that she finally asked Sharib how much longer he wanted to continue fighting before seriously thinking about the family’s future.Sharib asked for just two more years of acting, and thankfully things changed when he landed The Family Man soon after.The role transformed his career and opened several new doors in films and OTT projects.Since then, the actor has appeared in projects such as Scam 1992, Asur, Vikram Vedha, Mission Majnu, Fighter and The Diplomat.Nasreen revealed that Sharib had slowly bought all the jewelery she had sold during her fighting years.“He kept his promise,” she said emotionally.However, soon after Sharib finally succeeded, Nasreen was diagnosed with aggressive oral cancer. He is currently undergoing treatment and recently revealed that the disease has recurred for the sixth time.
