From A Builder To A Bodybuilder

Zaheer Iqbal is the hot new flavour of Bollywood. In a heartwarming chat with ‘H&N’, the six feet tall actor with dreamy eyes and drool-worthy physique tells us all it took to make his dreams - of building homes and acting in movies - come true.

- ​Vinodini Krishnakumar

An Out & Out Bandra Boy

I am a complete Bandra boy – having been born, brought up and studied in Bandra. I went to a school called Learner’s Academy in Bandra, after which I went to MMK (Mithibai) College. Before MMK, for a brief while, I went to a Cambridge affiliated college in Juhu.

And the following story will tell you about the bond I share with my parents. I remember missing one class after a month of starting college, and the college called my parents about it. On reaching home, my father asked me if I bunked classes. I said, ‘Yes. I’ve been looking forward to college life, bunking lectures etc, and this is like school. I want to experience normal college life’. My father was totally chilled; he asked me which college I wanted to switch over to, and I said MMK. I call my dad one of my best friends. There’s absolutely nothing in my life I don’t tell my parents; they’re just amazing!

A Teen Builder

I gave up college though in the 13 th grade. I was studying BMS (Bachelors of Management Studies) but I realized that I wasn’t learning anything practically. Moreover, I was always interested in starting work soon. My dad’s in the construction business – he works mainly on the SRA (Slum Rehabilitation Authority) projects in Bandra, so I started working with him, and slowly started working independently. I was eager to become the youngest builder in Bandra. I moved on to untapped areas like Dongri and Mohamad Ali Road, continuing to work on redevelopment schemes. A 37-storey tower in South Mumbai, which is under construction now, is my baby.