Cricket and films are the greatest pastimes in India, with fandoms bordering on obsession. So, it’s only natural that once in a while, a cricket player will toe the line with acting (Sourav Ganguly, Sreesanth) either out of passion or need. There’s one such star spin bowler from Shah Rukh Khan’s IPL team, Kolkata Knight Riders, who once worked as a junior artist for a Tamil film for ₹600.

This star cricketer worked as junior artist in Jeeva

Varun Chakravarthy, aka CV Varun, discussed the various roles he dabbled in during a chat with the retired Test player R Ashwin on his YouTube channel. Now 33, Varun said he found his true calling for cricket at 26. He dabbled being a guitarist, architect, filmmaker and even an actor before that.

While in college, Varun worked at an architectural firm, where he earned ₹14,000 per month. By the time he left, he had earned ₹18,000. At 24, he dabbled in filmmaking and decided to work as an assistant director. While working with director Suseenthiran in the 2014 Tamil film Jeeva, he made an appearance as a cricket on-screen.

“I signed as a junior artist for ₹600 per day,” he said. When Ashwin asked him how much his daily allowance is now as a cricketer, Varun replied with a smile, “Right now it’s $300 ( ₹25,000).” Varun said that he got the opportunity to play cricket on-screen as he would take part in Tennis ball tournaments. “They used to announce that if you hit a six, you get ₹300. If you bowl a yorker, you’ll get ₹200,” he said.

From a man who once worked as a junior artist, Varun is now a star cricketer who earns ₹12 crore for the IPL season, according to a Koimoi report.

About Varun Chakravarthy

Varun was born in 1991 in Bidar, Karnataka, to Vinod Chakravarthy, an ITS officer working for BSNL, and Malini, a housewife. His father is half Tamil and half Malayali, and his mother is Kannadiga. He gave up a job in architecture to pursue cricket as a profession.

He came into the limelight during the 2018 Tamil Nadu Premier League. The same year, he was bought by Preity Zinta’s Kings XI Punjab for the 2019 Indian Premier League (IPL). In the 2020 IPL auction, he was bought by Shah Rukh’s KKR team. Varun has won 8 Player of the Match awards in the IPL, one of the most by any bowler in the tournament.