EXCLUSIVE: Sonam Khan reveals her new name is influenced by Anil Kapoor’s daughter Sonam Kapoor, recalls Yash Chopra telling her ‘Actresses ka naam short hona chahiye’

Actress Sonam Khan – who was born Bakhtavar Khan, recently sat down for a quick and candid chat with Bollywood Bubble. During the interaction, the actress – who has starred in films such as Tridev, Mitti Aur Sona, Lashkar, Kroadh, Kodama Simham, Ajooba, Vishwatma and more. got candid about why she changed her name.

Sonam Khan – while talking about her first meeting with ace filmmaker Yash Chopra, got candid about how Anil Kapoor’s daughter, Sonam Kapoor’s name influenced her new name. Read on.

Sonam Khan on her 1st meeting with Yash Chopra

Recalling her first meeting with Yash Chopra, Sonam said, “Main unke office gayi thi aur unhone mujhse meri umra poochi. Main us waqt thi 13.5 saal ki, lekin maine bola main 18 saal ki hoon. Kyunki 13.5 saal ki ladki ko kaun kaam dega? Uss time log apni umar chupate the, Maine apni zyada batayi. Phir jab hume Switzerland jana tha shooting ke liye aur passport banana tha toh unhone bola aap school leaving certificate lekar aaiye. (I had gone to his office and he asked me my age. At that time, I was 13.5 years old, but I told him I was 18. I lied because no one gave work to young girl, and people hide their age and increased and said. Later, when we needed to go to Switzerland for a shoot and had to get a passport, he said to bring my school leaving certificate).”

She continued, “Toh main to badi darte hue school gayi, wahan principal se bhi daant kha li maine kaha. Unhone kaha ki tum padhai chod rahi ho, teachers ne bhi dirty look diya. Par khair unse joojh bolkar main apna leaving certificate lekar aa gayi aur seedha maine Yash ji ko diya. Unhone dekhkar bola, ‘kya tum 13.5 saal ki ho, nahi chalega. Aapko main nahi le sakta’. (So, I nervously went to school and got scolded by the principal. The teachers also gave me a dirty look. But anyway, after struggling, I got my leaving certificate and went directly to Yash Ji. I covered my face and he shockingly asked, ‘You are 13.5 years old. I can’t take you’).”

She further noted, “Mujhe almost Vijay se nikal diya gaya tha, but maine bahut minnat ki. Maine bola ki sir aap jaisa break mujhe nahi milega aur mujhe zaroorat hai. Toh Yash Chopra ji bahut minnaton ke baad wo maane aur phir meri journey start hui. (I was almost ousted from Vijay for this reason. But I requested Yashji to cast me as it was a big opportunity. After pleading, he agreed to take me).”

Sonam on changing her name

Talking about why she changed her name, the ‘Tridev’ actress said, “Naam badalne ke peechhe ki kahani ye hai ki Yash ji ko Anil Kapoor ji ki beti ka naam bahut pasand tha, Sonam. Aur mera naam tha Bakhtavar Khan, jo hai abhi bhi. Toh Yash Chopra ji ki soch aisi thi ki unhone mujhe bola ki ek actress jo hoti hai, uska naam short and sweet hona chahiye. Aur mujhe Anil Kapoor ji ki beti ka naam bahut pasand hai. Bahut rare hai jo ke baad sahi thi. To mera naam Bakhtavar Khan se Sonam ho gaya. Aur dono namon ka ek hi matlab hai. (The story behind changing my name is that Yash Ji liked Anil Kapoor’s daughter’s name, Sonam, very much. Yash Chopra Ji thought that an actress should have a short and sweet name, and he liked Anil Kapoor’s daughter’s name very much. It was very rare, which was correct. So, my name changed from Bakhtawar Khan to Sonam, and coincidentally, both names have the same meaning).

Watch the full interview here:

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Also Read: EXCLUSIVE: Sonam Khan recalls Govinda holding her hand and teaching her dance; says, “Wo bolte the, ‘Achhi shakal hai to actress banne aa gayi’”