“Tu karm kar, phal ki chinta mat kar” – is a phrase that most of us have heard, but very few actually follow it. Celebrity trainer Mustafa Ahmed is one of those few who embodies this. Today, he is receiving praise for playing Rizwan, Hamza’s trusted right-hand man, in Dhurandhar The Revenge. But long before the spotlight found him, Mustafa was earning just Rs 10,000 a month as a gym trainer in Janakpuri, Delhi. Almost 15 years later, he would become Hrithik Roshan’s personal trainer.
Mustafa’s trip was anything but conventional. He was not a prodigy who was expected to “succeed.” In fact, like the boy from Taare Zameen Par, he struggled with dyslexia and eventually dropped out of formal education.
Speaking on the Jag Of All Trades podcast, Mustafa Ahmed recalled: “I wasn’t a bright kid. I was dyslexic and came from an Afghan background. But I was always physical: I was good at sports, I learned to dance naturally. Anything that involved using my body, I was good at it.”
At the age of 21, he was already earning Rs 1 lakh a month as the youngest team leader in a call center in 2001, a dream job for many. But one moment everything changed. While training at a gym in Janakpuri, he noticed a trainer ignoring a woman in her 40s. He stepped in to help her, not knowing that it would alter the course of her life.
On the Alpha Coach podcast, he shared, “A couple of months later, she handed me an envelope and asked me to read it at home. It scared me. But in that letter, she wrote that working out had brought the spark back into her marriage. She told me that was my life’s calling, and not following it would be a crime.”
The words stayed with him. Shortly after, Mustafa Ahmed quit his well-paid job. “My manager called me crazy,” he said. His mother also stopped talking to him for leaving a stable career, especially after he had already discontinued his studies.
He went back to basics and started working at a gym in west Delhi for just Rs 10,000 a month, waking up at 4am every day to open the shutters. Around this time, a visit to Fitness First in Connaught Place changed his trajectory again. Despite having no formal qualifications, Mustafa’s honesty and passion got him a job.
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“They offered me Rs 18,000 plus Rs 600 per session, of which they kept Rs 300 and gave me the other Rs 300. I couldn’t believe people would pay me that for an hour. That’s when I felt: the sky is the limit,” he said.
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What followed was hard, relentless work. Within three months, Mustafa became the number one Fitness First trainer in Asia. He conducted up to 14 sessions a day, six days a week, putting in nearly 400 hours a month and earning over Rs 1.4 lakh. By 2009, he had proven himself. As his career grew, so did his ambitions. Watching international trainers dominate the Indian fitness space, Mustafa often wondered why Indian trainers were not given the same platform. “I thought I was on par with them. So why not me?” said.
Life responded in unexpected ways. His wife Radhika started a healthy baking company, which led to a chance connection with a celebrity trainer, who happened to be associated with Hrithik Roshan. One message later, and after weeks of uncertainty, Mustafa finally received a call.
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“Hrithik texted me saying he was looking for someone. We met, talked about his injuries and training, and two days later he asked me if I could train him. Just like that, he became my first client in 2015,” Mustafa recalled.
From there there was no turning back. He became one of the most sought-after fitness trainers and eventually expanded into online training, especially after the pandemic, to make his methods more accessible.
His transition to acting, however, was another twist of fate. While he has not revealed how he met director Aditya Dhar, Mustafa Ahmed has often credited him for pushing him into this new world.
Before the release of Dhurandhar, Mustafa had written an emotional note for Aditya back in 2025: “‘Main hoon na. Tu kar’. He would say this whenever I doubted myself. ‘Tu theek hai na’ when I was not well. ‘Tu khush hai na’ when I got emotional.” Reflecting on his debut, he added: “Aditya Dhar, you took me on a journey I never imagined. You saw in me what I didn’t know existed. But most importantly, you gave me your friendship and love, and for that, you have my loyalty for life.”
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Mustafa’s own insecurities once held him back. “I come from a family where everyone looks like a model and I always thought I was the ugly duckling. But when I danced at an Afghan wedding and people noticed me, I realized I could attract attention,” she shared.
When Dhurandhar finally released on December 5, Mustafa Ahmed took to Instagram to reflect on his first day on set: “‘It’s time. Breathe. Control the chaos. And don’t ruin this.’ I kept repeating this to myself. I’m not a trained actor, but I knew in my heart that I belong. The love I’ve received only reinforces that belief: that if you are honest about your craft and remain a student, you can achieve anything.”
Who does Mustafa Ahmed play in Aditya Dhar’s Dhurandhar?
In the Dhurandhar franchise, Mustafa Ahmed plays Rizwan, an R&AW agent who infiltrates Arshad Pappu’s gang. Introduced to Ranveer Singh’s Hamza by Gaurav Gera’s Mohammad Aalam in the prequel, Rizwan evolves into Hamza’s trusted right-hand man in the sequel, cementing Mustafa’s unlikely but inspiring journey from the gyms to the big screen.
This article is a biographical article about Mustafa Ahmed’s transition from physical training to acting and is for informational and entertainment purposes. Highlights her personal journey overcoming dyslexia and career changes; however, it does not constitute professional, medical or fitness advice. Readers should consult qualified experts before beginning any rigorous fitness training program or making important health-related decisions.