In an old interview with ETC Bollywood, Juhi shared, “When I was very young, they asked us in school, what do you aspire to become when you grow up and at that time, a film had come, Rich and Famous, so I simply wrote in my book: ‘Happy, healthy, rich and famous’. When my friends saw this, they teased me a lot. They were like, ‘How are you going to be rich and famous?’ I had no idea then. I was hardly in sixth, or seventh grade. But, look at life, I got an opportunity. A simple part in college fashion show, took me to Miss India Pageant. Even my parents were shocked.”
Her participation in the Miss India pageant, “just for fun”, changed her trajectory when she emerged as its winner, opening doors for her in the world of modelling and acting. After she ventured into films, Juhi rose to fame through hits like Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke, Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, Yes Boss, Darr, Bol Radha Bol, and others.
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While Juhi Chawla’s wealth partly originates from her film career, the majority of her fortune comes from her various business ventures. She is the co-founder of Shah Rukh Khan’s Red Chillies Group and even co-owns several cricket teams, including the Kolkata Knight Riders. The team was bought back in 2007 for $75.09 million, which is about Rs 623 crore, by Shah Rukh Khan, Juhi Chawla and her husband Jay Mehta. According to Forbes, the team’s current value stands at $1.1 billion, which is Rs 9,139 crore.
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Before this, in 2001, Shah Rukh and Juhi started a production house together, Dreamz Unlimited, and co-produced three films before the company parted ways due to internal conflicts. Juhi registered a company in Mumbai, Juhi Chawla Productions Private Limited. But, starting a production house was not her idea. Speaking to Doordarshan Sahyadri, Juhi recalled, “Aziz Mirza, who did films like Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman and Yes Boss with Shah Rukh (Khan) and me, he decided that we should start a production house. It was his idea. I wasn’t so wise to think of all that. I am simply lucky.”
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She added, “We then started Dreamz Unlimited, and started to work on Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani. I had zero knowledge about production. I just used to go to my shooting, and soon after I was done, I would return home. And, while on my way to home, I used to remember, ‘Arey, I am the producer, I should have been on the set.’ Usually, after pack up, producers check on the status of the shoot, what’s the planning, how is the account looking. I used to often forget it. But, luckily I was part of a great team and they never pointed out that I was not present with them. When the film was about to release, then I became more active and helped in publicity designs, how we should go about the marketing strategies and other things. We used to sit for hours. I enjoyed the process a lot.”
Juhi is also a shareholder in Saurashtra Cement Ltd, a company owned by her husband Jay Mehta’s Mehta Group. The couple lives in Jay’s family-owned apartment building, which is located in Malabar Hill, one of Mumbai’s most expensive neighbourhoods. According to Mid-Day, the family of four occupies two whole floors in the building. They have kept two other floors to house Mehta’s art collection. On the 10th floor, they have a massive terrace that faces Marine Drive.
The couple also own two restaurants in Mumbai–the Italian-inspired Gustoso and the chic Lebanese Rue du Liban–according to the Architectural Digest. They own another luxurious house in Porbandar, Hill Bungalow, which is redesigned by Chana Daswatte, according to Architectural Digest.
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Juhi also invests in real estate, and along with her husband, owns several luxurious cars, including an Aston Martin Rapide worth Rs 3.3 crore, a BMW 7 for Rs 1.8 crore, a Mercedes-Benz S Class worth Rs 1.7 croe, a Jaguar XJ worth Rs 1.2 crore, and a Porsche Cayenne, priced between Rs 1.36-2 crore, according to Cartoq and CarDekho.
The actress has also been the brand ambassador of several companies, and has endorsed brands such as Maggi, Pepsi, Kurkure, Rooh Afza, Kelloggs Chocos, Keshking Ayurvedic Oil, Gai Banaspati, Ashoka Pickles, Emami Boroplus, among others. She became the brand ambassador for the ‘Masala-ae-Magic’ range of Maggi seasonings in 2019. Juhi was also made the brand ambassador for Kurkure in 2004. She was seen in several ‘Tedha Hai Par Mera Hai’ ad campaigns for the brand. She also signed as the brand ambassador for Boroplus and Kesh King ayurvedic hair oil and is still seen endorsing these products.
She has also been part of reality shows like Jhalak Dikhlaa Jaa as its judge.
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While Juhi has seen many ups in her life, she has also seen lows. She lost her mother in an accident. In 2014, her brother Bobby Chawla died after being in a coma for four years. These incidents pushed Juhi towards spirituality, yoga and philanthropy.
Juhi told Doordarshan Sahyadri, “I have lost a lot of my family members. My dad fell ill and was bed-ridden for two years before he passed away. My aunt got cancer. I had a cousin, who was extremely young and beautiful, she got cancer, then my brother fell sick. Looking at all this, I was really scared. And all this deepened my interest in looking for wellness, yoga and spirituality.”
Juhi Chawla is celebrating her 57th birthday today.
