Delnaaz Irani Calls Chumbak Her Second Innings 22 Years On
Delnaaz Irani opens up about playing Gulshan Taraporewala in Chumbak, the role written with her in mind, and why it feels like a second innings after Sweetu.
Delnaaz Irani has spent more than two decades being known as one character — Sweetu from Kal Ho Naa Ho. Now the actor says her role as Gulshan Taraporewala in Chumbak is bringing the same kind of affection back, and she is calling this phase her “second innings.”
The show reunites her with creators JD Majethia and Aatish Kapadia, whom she has known since her Gujarati theatre days in the 1990s. That history matters because Aatish wrote the part with Delnaaz in mind.
A role that started as a birthday hint
Delnaaz says the seed was planted about two and a half years ago at Rupali Ganguly’s birthday. JD and Aatish told her they were writing a big show — possibly for Netflix — and Aatish said he could only see her playing one particular part.
Then the project went quiet. When a casting director later called her for an audition, she connected the dots and rang Aatish directly. His message was simple: give it your 100 per cent.
The audition became a small piece of performance. Delnaaz found a Parsi-style dress in her cupboard, added a scarf, and carried a prayer book and agarbattis. The team loved the preparation and signed her.
Building Gulshan from real life
Delnaaz says the script gave her the arc, but she filled in Gulshan from her own observations — relatives, neighbours and the aunties around her who dress a certain way, speak a certain way and mollycoddle their children. Gulshan is overprotective and at times overbearing, but Delnaaz wanted to keep a sweetness in the character rather than let her tip into being entirely negative.
Being Parsi herself helped. It also added a quiet full circle: she had played a Parsi character in JD and Aatish’s 2005 show Batliwala House No. 43.
Why she calls it a second innings
Even after films and television shows, Sweetu remained the role audiences remembered. Delnaaz says that when fans watch Chumbak, they tell her, “Now we’ve seen you again!” — not always registering everything she did in between.
“People will remember me for this character for years.”
The actor sees it as a win-win. She does not feel the need to prove that she did 25 television serials and four reality shows after Kal Ho Naa Ho. The love for one defining character is enough.
The OTT shift has changed her priorities
For Delnaaz, Chumbak also represents what OTT can do differently: more breathing space than television’s schedule. She still calls television her foundation and says she would happily return, but she is now clear about what she wants from a set.
- Who is making it: the team matters first, before the role or the money.
- A healthier atmosphere: a better budget often means cleaner, calmer working conditions.
- Protecting happiness: if a space feels off, she is willing to pull back rather than keep pleasing people.
She adds that television still offers security, consistency and better pay, but her 20-something need to prove herself has faded. Now she would rather take a little less for the right experience than be unhappy.
What’s next
Delnaaz’s next is the film Zindagi Phir Bhi Wahan Khoobsurat Hai, another Parsi-background story directed and produced by Kapil Sharma — Anil Sharma’s brother. She says it brings back the feel of Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Basu Chatterjee and Sai Paranjpye films and is expected by the end of the year. She has also started her own YouTube channel.
Source: Filmfare
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