Stammering made my childhood hell: Hrithik

Mumbai, Sept 24 (PTI) He is a Bollywood superstar and is
known for his impressive dialogue delivery but it is hard to
believe that actor Hrithik Roshan's childhood was traumatised
because of stammering, a problem which plagues him even today.

The actor, who acquired the heartthrob status
overnight with his debut-hit 'Kaho Na Pyaar Hain', revealed
that the defect surfaced when he was around six years old.

"Everything seems normal till you start talking. The
minute you start talking, you get stuck and you don't know
why? Right from your toes to the ends of your hair strands,
you are in complete shock. Your heart palpitates, you don't
understand and you are aware of people looking at you. You can
compare it to hell," Hrithik said.

Recalling his school days on director Farah Khan's
celebrity chat show 'Tere Mere Beach Mein', to be broadcast
this Saturday on Star Plus, the 35-year-old said his childhood
turned hell after his classmates began teasing him.

"Unfortunately, it's one of those handicaps that is
made fun of. Especially kids, you can't blame them but they
end up being mean because it looks funny. So the childhood of
a person suffering from a problem like this is pure hell...
you have to go through all those little moments of hell," the
actor said.
Attending oral examinations was the most dreaded one
for the heartthrob, who played a superhero in the 2006
blockbuster 'Krrish'.

"For oral tests at school, I used to bunk school, I
used to fall sick, I used to break my hand, I used to get a
sprain."

When asked how long the speech defect has bothered
him, Hrithik said, "Six to 35. I am 35 (years old)."

The actor, however, said that things improved for him
gradually, after he started practicing speech therapies on a
daily basis.

Last seen in the epic 'Jodhaa Akbar', the Hrithik has
won four Filmfare awards for the best actor after debuting in
the industry eight years ago. His next film 'Kites' is
expected to release by the end of this year. PTI NIK
SDE