Ananya Panday on the ‘Star Kid’ Label: “It’s Been Turned into an Insult, and That’s Unfair”

Actor Ananya Panday, daughter of Bollywood star Chunky Panday, recently shared her views on the term ‘star kid’, expressing discomfort with how it has been used. Speaking on Raj Shamani’s podcast, Ananya revealed that she feels the term has been turned into an insult.

“People have made it (star kid) a bad word. And I don’t think it’s a bad word,” Ananya said. “When you’re watching something on screen, you shouldn’t immediately think, ‘Oh, this is someone’s daughter.’ It doesn’t have to be like that. People should just focus on the work.”

Ananya, who made her debut in 2019 with Student of the Year 2, a Karan Johar production, also reflected on her childhood experiences and her close bond with Shah Rukh Khan’s family. Growing up as a friend of Suhana Khan, she described Shah Rukh as the “true definition of an emotionally available man” and praised him as an exceptional father figure and a deeply respected personality.

Ananya emphasized that the film industry is a space where both insiders and outsiders can thrive. “The industry has given us so much, and the audience has supported us all. There are people from film families who are thriving, and there are people without any industry connections who are thriving even more,” she added, highlighting the need to move past the insider-outsider debate.

Chunky Panday, Ananya’s father, rose to fame in the late 1980s and 1990s, while her mother, Bhavana Pandey, is a prominent socialite. Ananya entered the film industry at 19 and has since worked on several high-profile projects, including her upcoming series Call Me Bae.