Actor Dhanush spoke about his childhood at the audio launch event of his upcoming film, Idli Kadhai, which he has also directed and acted in. At the event held in Chennai on Sunday evening, the actor revealed that as a child he used to collect and sell flowers to buy idlis, but the internet calls him suspicious.
Dhanush opened up about his love for idlis.
Dhanush revealed at the event that as a child he loved idlis so much that he wanted to eat idlis every day, but his family did not have the money to buy idlis. So, he said he used to sell flowers to buy idlis. He said, “As a child, I used to crave for idlis every day but I couldn’t afford them. So we started collecting flowers from the neighbourhood. The money we got was based on the amount of flowers we collected every day. Me, my sister and my cousins would wake up at 4 am and do this for more than two hours.”
He further said that the satisfaction he got from idlis back then cannot be compared to today when he can afford them. “We used to get a little over ₹2 for this work. Then, we would go to a pumpset nearby, take a bath and walk on the main road with just a towel. We would get four-five idlis for that money. Nothing can beat the satisfaction and taste of eating food from your hard-earned money. I don’t get the same happiness and taste in restaurants now that I used to get in my childhood,” Dhanush said.
In those memories, Dhanush revealed that he named his film Idli Kadhai.
Internet reactions
However, people questioned whether Dhanush, son of director Kasthuri Raja, really had to struggle to buy idlis. An X (earlier on Twitter) user commented, “So he was poor in his childhood, so director Kasthuri Raja never gave him or his family money, is that true?” Another said, “Dhanush is a director’s son. He had no money, this is a blatant lie.”
One person pointed out that by the time Dhanush was eight, his father had already directed a few films, and wrote, “When you are 8-9 years old, your father has already directed 4-5 films and you are saying you don’t have money to buy idlis… don’t talk just for the sake of talking.” A suspicious X user wrote, “I lived a middle-class life from class 7 to 10, but I never had to struggle to eat a plate of idlis.”
However, his speech left some fans emotional, and one of them wrote, “True!!! Nothing can match my childhood food dreams now!! I remember a samosa used to be sold for Rs. 2.5 near my school! I can’t afford that! Now no matter how much money I spend on food, I can’t get that taste.”
“Idli Kadhai” stars Dhanush and Nithya Menen along with Arun Vijay, Shalini Pandey, Sathyaraj, R. Parthiban, P. Samuthirakani and Rajkiran. It will release in theatres on October 1. Dhanush has also co-produced and directed the film, which he stars in.
