Friends fondly remember Sidharth Shukla on birth anniversary

December 12 marks what would’ve been late TV star Sidharth Shukla’s 41st birthday and his close friends fondly remember the Bigg Boss 13 winner to mark the day.

The Hindustan Times reached out to some of Sidharth’s close friends and colleagues, including Arti Singh, Vivan Bhatena, Abhinav Shukla, and Shefali Jariwala who all fondly remembered the star, who died from a cardiac arrest on September 2.

Vivan remembered Sidharth as “one of the most defiant” people.

“He was not a follower. He was mad, fun, and would always find ways to get into trouble,” he added, sharing that he was fond of doing all the ‘wrong’ things before making them right.

According to Abhinav, Sidharth lived his life king size.

“We started our careers together in 2004 in a pageant. I remember we all had to prepare our introductions for the pageant and he said something like ‘Live life like it’s your last because one day you’ll be right’,” he recalled.

“He was a one-man army and a fun guy. He was always a happy soul and that I still cherish about him,” said Arti adding that while they didn’t stay in touch, it still “feels like a bad dream” to her.

Shefali also fondly remembered the Balika Vadhu star, saying, “He was sarcastic to a point when you wouldn’t know if he was pulling your leg or complimenting you. He was never a party pooper.”

She also recalled a 20-year-old-memory about how he drove his bike in chilling December weather to meet her once.