On the couch of Koffee With Karan 8, Ajay Devgn reflected on the life of his father Veeru Devgn and the struggles that he had to endure as a young person finding his footing in the city. Rohit Shetty and Karan Johar joined the discussion and recalled the lives of their own fathers who went through immense struggles to reach where they are now.

The three of them also spoke about the raging Nepotism debate and Karan went on to say that his father Yash Johar would have found the nepotism debate futile as he had to sacrifice a lot of ensure his stability in the industry.

When he asked Ajay Devgn if his father got the recognition he deserved, he replied, "Eventually, yes. He ran away from his home in Punjab when he was just 13. He came to Mumbai without a train ticket, was put behind bars, had no work, no food. Somebody helped him out, said that if he washes his cab, my father could sleep in it. He started from there, and eventually became a carpenter, and then a gangster in Sion Koliwada. They had gangs at that time, and gang wars."

He further continued, "One day, a very senior action director, Mr Ravi Khanna, he was passing by, and there was a street fight going on. He stopped the car, and he called my dad after the fight. He said, 'What do you do?' My dad said he's a carpenter, and Mr Khanna said a very nice line he said, 'Tu ladta acha hai, come meet me tomorrow'. He made him a fighter"

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That's how his father got into the film industry and became a reputed action director in his later life that ensured a swift gateway for Ajay Devgn to follow.

Singham director Rohit Shetty also shared a similar story of struggle of his own father who died when Rohit was just 8-9 years old. His father was hired as an action director because of his well-built and physique.

The three of them agreed as they spoke of the nepotism debate and how unjust the criticism meted out on the starkids really is.

Koffee With Karan 8 is available to stream on Disney + Hotstar with new episodes releasing every Thursday.