Suniel Shetty says he first met son-in-law KL Rahul as a fan, regrets not buying IPL team

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3 min readMumbaiJul 23, 2026 10:01 PM IST

Suniel Shetty says he first met son-in-law KL Rahul as a "fanboy".

Not too many people know that Suniel Shetty wanted to be a cricketer before he became an actor. An avid sports buff, little did he know that decades later, he’d get a cricketer as a son-in-law. KL Rahul married his daughter and actor Athiya Shetty in 2023. They’re now parents to a daughter, Evaarah Vipula, born last year.

Suniel Shetty on his first meeting with KL Rahul

Suniel Shetty recently recalled that he first met his then-future son-in-law KL Rahul as a fan. “It was a fanboy moment. I met him as a fan much, much before they met each other. To this day, that’s how I look at him — somebody who’s very well-spoken, soft, humble, and leaves a huge impact on the youth whenever and wherever he plays,” said the actor.

Suniel added that he doesn’t give any cricket advice to KL Rahul, just like he has no advice to offer to his son, Ahan Shetty, who’s now an actor. “I don’t give advice to both my boys. Like I say, we don’t discuss careers at home; we discuss character. We keep it very, very simple,” the actor told Mid-Day.

Suniel Shetty on why he doesn’t have an IPL team

For someone as inclined towards sports as him, and now even related to a sportsman, Suniel Shetty has kept a curious distance from Bollywood’s obsession with cricket — the Indian Premier League (IPL). However, he now feels that he could’ve bought an IPL team back when it started in 2008, since he could afford it.

“I could’ve bought a team. If somebody would’ve backed me, I probably would’ve gone into it. In today’s time, you have funders, VCs (Venture Capitalists), and investors who are keen to invest with you. Back then, it wasn’t that way. We couldn’t even think of spending so much money,” confessed Suniel.

Shah Rukh Khan, who bought his IPL team Kolkata Knight Riders for Rs 570 crore, had his longtime costar and former producing partner Juhi Chawla and her businessman husband Jay Mehta in his corner. “Shah Rukh was at the right place at the right time, and with the right people. And me, being an introvert, I was… like I said, Shah Rukh was in a better place,” admitted Suniel.

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He also lauded the “vision” of his co-star from Farah Khan’s 2004 hit action comedy Main Hoon Na. “I always believed Shah Rukh is an absolute visionary. Whatever he’s done in life, he’s done it so beautifully,” added Suniel.

Suniel Shetty was last seen in Ahmed Khan’s hit adventure comedy Welcome to the Jungle.

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