Showing posts with label Channel V. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Channel V. Show all posts
How Aditya Roy Kapur’s Afro hairstyle earned him a VJ gig
9:49 AM
Aditya Roy Kapur’s good hair day earned him a trainee VJ gig that eventually proved a springboard to Bollywood
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; July 25, 2025)
There are many roads to Bollywood, some take the theatre route, others slog through auditions, and then there were the lucky few in the early 2000s who rode in on a wave of pop culture and VJ stardom. A prominent face among them was actor Aditya Roy Kapur. At 18, long before his chiselled abs and disarming smile made him a ladies’ favourite, he was a bright-eyed VJ at Channel V, standing out for his distinctive Afro hairstyle.
That hairstyle is what landed him the gig in 2003, the actor said candidly. He explained, “My brother [Siddharth Roy Kapur] had a friend, who used to work in Channel V. When she came home one day and saw that I have this Afro, she found it an interesting look and suggested that I audition for the channel. I was never interested in arts. So, I told her a hard no. But my mom kicked my a** and told me to do it. So, on a rainy evening, I grudgingly caught the train from Churchgate to Andheri,” he chuckled.
Channel V, one of the two leading music channels of India then, operated out of Split Labs in Saki Naka, Andheri East. Its popular music shows, from Very V to Basement were shot at Chandivali Studios, a stone’s throw away from the office. That is where Kapur landed. “Sarah Jane Dias, the star VJ at that time, was shooting one of those countdown shows. I reached half an hour late because of the rains, and grudgingly did that audition. They felt I had an interesting vibe, but wasn’t ready to be on screen yet. So, they made me a trainee VJ,” he recalled.
For the next month, Kapur would take the train from Churchgate to Andheri, sit in the studio, and observe what goes into the making of a show and a VJ. A month later, when Basement’s host, Juhi Pande, was travelling, he landed up on camera. And that too, with the best company — Anuradha Menon aka Lola Kutty. The two then regrouped for another show, Lola TV. “Lola Kutty is a legend. She’d train me, and then one evening, she said, ‘Let’s get on camera.’ So, the [producers] gave me a white T-shirt with ‘Trainee VJ’ written on it and cast me as an assistant to her. I would just sit in front of the camera,” he laughed.
Pakao, his first solo show as a VJ, came in 2004. Contrary to popular belief, it wasn’t where he interviewed Katrina Kaif, who would go on to become his co-star in Fitoor, in 2016. Before the Channel V interview, he had shot a Lakme ad with Kaif as well. “[The script was] that she walks by, all these boys look at her, and everyone gives a big reaction. Eleven of us boys were waiting in one room the whole day. At midnight finally, I was asked to shoot my close-up. Obviously, I didn’t meet Katrina — she had filmed her portions earlier. I told this to her later.”
Kapur has come a long way since then. Today, with hits like Aashiqui 2 (2013), Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (2013), and Metro... In Dino under his belt, he is among the leading actors of Bollywood. Understandably then, his first screen fame — the four-and-a-half years’ stint at Channel V — remains special to him. “We used to host in English. When Roadies and other reality TV shows became a rage, the channel pivoted to Hindi. After hosting in English for three years, suddenly they wanted us to host in Hindi. The whole syntax changed. That was tough for me as my Hindi was poor. If you ask anyone on the Channel V crew, they could never foresee me becoming a Hindi movie actor. They would’ve laughed at the thought.”
Since this is about firsts, when asked about his first splurge from his VJ job, he said, “It’s not as if I was making crazy money at the time, but at that age, I was happy with what I was getting. I remember my most expensive purchase was a Royal Enfield bike. I ride it to this day,” the actor ended. Well, dil bole vroom, vroom.
Aditya Roy Kapur with Anuradha Menon aka Lola Kutty. Pics/Channel V, Instagram
At Channel V, they laughed at me. They would say, ‘yeh actor kabhi nahin ban sakta’-Aditya Roy Kapur
3:13 PM
He’s the pin-up boy of the moment. And he knows it. But romantic icon of 2023 Aditya Roy Kapur, is so much more
Aastha Atray Banan (MID-DAY; July 30, 2023)
It's been a while since the Bollywood-loving, urban women of India have been this close to unison on a common object of desire. Ever since The Night Manager hit our mobile screens, Aditya Roy Kapur has been “the one”.
Chiselled body—flaunted amply in shirtless scenes, ambling on the beach—a shy yet enticing smile, decent acting chops, and finally a mega hit. He seems to have it all for the moment. And in an endless Instagram frenzy of curated wedding pictures, here is a leading man who is single, making him ideal fodder for fantasy.
The day we meet Kapur, it’s pouring and the IMD has instructed citizens to stay at home. He is looking out of the window of his publicist’s Bandra office, gleefully. We remind him that the weather must be very different in Spain, where he was on vacation last week. “Yes, there was a lot of sun. I was having FOMO—I didn’t want to miss the rain. I love this.”
Kapur poses for photographs while we quote from a celebrity filmy magazine interview that claimed that he was entirely unaware of the female attention. “No, no! I am aware,” he clarifies. A young woman friend wants him to record a video, saying her name; that’s it. We relay the request faithfully. He breaks into that bashful smile. “Just keep saying names, that’s all?”
He won’t talk relationships we are told, not old, or new. Only work. But, there is enough to talk about.
He is particular about how he appears in pictures, how his hair sits, and refuses a plate of carb-heavy bhutta that’s offered to him. In the next moment, he gives in: “It’s okay, I trust you,” he tells the mid-day photographer.
It’s not easy to take a poor picture of Kapur. He sits across from us, his tall relaxed frame complimenting his amiable manner; it makes it easy to talk to him. He’s not quite the star; more like, the hot, relatable boy next door.
Kapur admits that he is in a good place. “Life is good. The Night Manager did well. I am happy, and looking forward to what’s coming up. I love the monsoons—not missing the sun at all,” he repeats.
That the web series was an adaptation of the British original starring Tom Hiddleston, hasn’t taken away from his performance, which is attracting applause. The only way to attack this role would then be to do it in your own way.
“You have to be convinced of the role—as an actor, you have to find your way into the part. It can’t come from a place of imitation. I was inspired by the original performances, but what helped was that the makers did a great job with the adaption.”
We also remind him that he is yet again playing a character who suffers on the inside, but holds a stoic exterior, much like damaged Sooraj/Arjun from Gumraah (2023), the vengeful Advait in Malang (2019), melancholic Rahul in Ashiqui 2 (2013), or even the kooky but disgruntled Avinash in Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (2013). “There has been a lot of suffering,” he laughs and agrees.
Are you like that in real life?
He gives us the “hmmm, you got me” smile, and says, “I guess, all of us are like that, no?” We say no, we are not. And he laughs again. “Honestly, I don’t know if I have all that perspective on myself. But this character had so much to unearth—there was a lot about his past. There was a lot for me to draw from.”
It’s been 10 years since Kapur’s first big film, Aashiqui 2, a musical love story starring Shraddha Kapoor. In 2009, he had starred in a bit role in London Dreams. The last decade has taught him that permanence is transient. “It’s a cliché, but clichés are true. You don’t need to get too low or too high. Stay level.”
When a film doesn’t work, he retreats and heals in a refuge. “You work so hard for so long, so it’s jarring when it doesn’t work. I need a few days to recoup, and then I go back into society.” Introvert, shall we call him? “Maybe an ambivert,” he says.
He didn’t ask for this, though. As a student at St Xavier’s College, Kapur wanted to be a cricketer. “Like the rest of India”, he quips. He also wanted to be a musician, and was the first vocalist of indie band Something Relevant. Then he went on to become a veejay on Channel V, where people appreciated his comic timing. “At Channel V, they laughed at me! They would say, ‘yeh actor kabhi nahin ban sakta’!”
And here we are sitting across one of the most desirable acting talents of Hindi cinema. “I am flattered. It is nice,” he smiles, “but I don’t dwell on it. I don’t keep it front and centre of my mind. I say, ya, ya! I don’t want it to become too much a part of how I perceive myself, or attach too much value to it. Because, it can go away very quickly.” In the end, for him, how he looks is part and parcel of the work he does. “It’s the quality of work that decides longevity or what you will do next.”
Ask him how he works on his craft, and Kapur says that it’s just about observing people, and gathering varied experiences. For now, he just tries to work on every role with as much focus as possible. “I tell myself, I can do this better, can’t I? I am never satisfied. Some directors say, ‘Yaar, tu khush nahin hota hai’.”
What he does want to do is try and play a negative character. Do we see him as a villain? Maybe. “Ya na? It could be good,” he thinks aloud.
We talk about Hollywood’s man of the moment, Ryan Gosling, who said recently that when he returned from a four-year break to acting, he realised that his work wasn’t therapy, it was just a job. “That’s the kind of clarity having a child gives you perhaps,” Kapur muses. “I have always had other interests. I stumbled into acting—I didn’t work towards this. Every role is therapeutic because I get to escape and be someone else. But it’s not everything.”
We are getting ready to say goodbye. He asks, “So, you headed back to work?” A celebrity who is not self-involved! We seem now to get the hype around this man. Before we leave, we ask, will young Aditya be happy with where older Aditya ended up.
“He would have never seen this coming. Acting in Hindi movies was not what I had thought of. I was a Hollywood action movie fan. But I have found something I actually love doing. I am happy I am doing this.”
So are we.
Channel V to shut shop while MTV will once again turn into music-only channel?
8:00 AM
Letty Mariam Abraham (MID-DAY; May 12, 2016)
After starting out as exclusive music channels, Channel V and MTV gradually incorporated daily soaps and reality shows in their programme list leaving a wee bit of a space for songs. Now, we hear Channel V is going to shut down and the network will collaborate with Hotstar, Star’s digital partner, and will henceforth telecast their shows on the web. If true, this would mean that shows like D4, Gumrah, Sadda Haq (pictured, above) and several others will no longer be featured on the channel.
It seems Star India will be making a strong play in the music genre — under the Channel V brand. “Channel V will be revamped as a youth focussed music brand effective July 1,” said a Star India spokesperson. The current shows will continue till end of June, after which the channel will transition to the revamped identity and programming.
In February 2016, Foxtel shut down the international Channel V and turned it into a 24-hour music video station. We wonder if the desi Channel V is headed the same way.
Another source from the TV industry reveals that MTV is also in for some major revamping: “MTV is apparently planning to go back to the basics. There is no confirmation on this, but it is going to be all about music and they will do away with their regular shows.” However, the channel is currently gearing up for Splitsvilla 9, which is expected to go on air around June.
Simultaneously, they are also working on a new show titled Angels of Rock. So, what will become of these shows if MTV goes back to being an exclusive music channel? A source close to MTV, however, denies the news.
When we got Sunny Leone in Bigg Boss, my mom stopped going for walks-Deepak Dhar
8:54 AM
From logging video cassettes for Rs 20 each, to helming huge productions such as Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi and Bigg Boss, Deepak Dhar’s professional journey has been full of unexpected twists and turns. He tells Deepali Dhingra why he is an ardent fan of Amitabh Bachchan and how he assured his parents that he isn’t part of the underworld
Deepali Dhingra (MID-DAY; January 25, 2014)
During his school days at Activity High School in Peddar Road, Deepak Dhar used to spend his pocket money buying video cassettes of Amitabh Bachchan’s films. On one particular occasion, the video cassette library he used to frequent was on the verge of going bankrupt, so they put everything on sale. “They were selling each VHS tape for Rs 100 and I had the exact amount,” he recalls. While most of his friends spent their sum on Bachchan’s superhit films such as Sholay, Don and Deewar, Dhar went ahead and bought Mahaan, a hit but not-so-popular movie of the actor, where he had a triple role. “All my friends were like, ‘What’s wrong with you?’ My reasoning was that I’ll get to watch three Bachchans at the price of one!” he laughs. The film buff might never have imagined that his ability to understand the logistics of entertainment, will, one day, lead him to becoming the CEO and MD of Endemol India, one of the leading content production companies in the country.
Baby steps
Born in Hyderabad to Kashmiri Pandit parents, Dhar remembers speaking fluent Telugu till the age of 10, when he moved to Mumbai with his parents. He stayed at Breach Candy for almost 15 years before moving to Powai where he currently resides. “I was always very filmi,” says the entrepreneur, referring to the ‘Mahaan’ episode, “I always had this flair for writing and photography,” he adds. Taking up engineering in college was not out of choice, but by default. “I come from a middle-class orthodox Kashmiri family, where you are a nobody if you are not an engineer or a doctor,” he states.
However, very soon the young student realised that engineering is not his cup of tea. “A friend called Raja used to work for a production house called Magic Box Productions, and asked me to come to his office. It was my final year of engineering and I was whiling away my time, so I went to their office in Oshiwara,” he recalls. That’s how he bagged his first job in 1996 that entailed him to log tapes. He was paid a measly Rs 20 for each tape that he logged. “I must have seen some really trashy films, but I enjoyed the stint thoroughly,” he smiles.
That same year, Prime Sports — now called Star Sports — was setting up a team for their production department that would broadcast the Cricket World Cup being held in India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. “I joined the team and was assigned to cover the matches that were going to be played in India,” he says. The young trainee would carry tripods and cables and in return, get to watch some of the cricketing greats, including Sachin Tendulkar, Mohammad Azharuddin and Sanjay Manjarekar in action. “It was a big thing for a young guy like me, as I’m a full-on Bollywood and cricket fan,” says Dhar. But he adds sheepishly, “The real lure for me was the merchandise — the T-shirt and the cap emblazoned with the words Prime Sports. It might not be a big deal now, but in those days, it was a matter of pride to own something like that,” says Dhar, who adds that just like the Mahaan VHS tape, he still has the T-shirt and cap at home.
After the three-month stint, he was absorbed into Star TV as a production assistant, a job he held for a couple of years, before joining MTV. “I got sucked into writing, creating, direction and production. I worked in close proximity with Cyrus Broacha, Danny McGill and VJ Noni and started getting known as the guy who was good at creating music television,” informs the 40-year-old.
But while things were going great professionally, home was another story altogether. “Extremely turbulent,” that’s how Dhar describes it. “My career had taken a detour and how. While my parents had grudgingly accepted the earlier jobs, they could not come to terms with my job at MTV. I would not come home for days, neither shower nor brush my teeth. My mom thought I’ve joined the underworld!” he chuckles at the memory.
Reality strikes
After a five-year stint at MTV, when Dhar joined Channel V, he was asked to direct Channel V Jammin, a show that was as close to reality TV as it could get in those days. “We would lock two musicians, as different from each other as chalk and cheese, in a room and ask them to come up with a track. It became a cult show,” he recalls. That was also the time when the channel was coming up with a talent hunt show called Popstars. When Sameer Nair, the former Star India head, called Dhar to ask what he thought about the show, the latter’s immediate reply was that he could direct it. “I bagged the show, but I had to cancel my vacation with my wife to Goa. Thankfully, she’s supportive of me and my activities,” he grins.
A night before the auditions were to begin, Dhar messaged Nair to inform him that everything was set for the auditions the next day. “Within a minute, I got a reply from him that said, ‘Remember, it’s not about auditions, it’s about emotions.’ For me, that was the brief. You won’t believe the number of girls who cried at the auditions — I think Popstars was known more for its emotions than its music,” Dhar says of the show that went on to become a cult series and gave birth to pop bands such as Viva and Aasma.
By then the maverick producer/director had had enough of music television and decided to shift gears. Nair put him on to Star One, a new channel. Here, the television whiz was in charge of The Great Indian Laughter Challenge, which made stand-up comedians Raju Srivastav, Sunil Pal and Naveen Prabhakar overnight stars. The triumph for Dhar was getting Navjot Singh Sidhu to co-host the show. “Nobody thought that Sidhu could be a perfect fit for the comedy genre. Everyone thought I was making a huge mistake by getting him on board. Star thought this was going to be the biggest misfire, but Sidhu’s one-line repartees helped him garner a huge fan following,” he adds. After a few seasons of the show, when Dhar went to Nair seeking a change of job, the latter let him go, but not before putting him in touch with then Endemol India CEO, Rajesh Kamat.
What lies ahead
Dhar may have decided to join Endemol, but it didn’t happen before facing some stiff opposition back home. “My parents, who had by now accepted and were even happy with what I was doing at Star TV, had never heard of Endemol. To my mom, it sounded like Paracetamol!” he laughs. He joined the production house in 2006. Things moved on pretty quickly from there. “I would have breakfast in Filmcity on the sets of The Great Indian Laughter Challenge, lunch on the sets of Fame Academy at RK Studio and dinner at Karjat on the sets of Bigg Boss. My driver Dilip and I are buddies now. His number on my speed dial is even before my wife’s,” he guffaws.
Dhar took over from Kamat after the latter quit Endemol in 2008. “Sameer and Rajesh were the two biggest influences in my career. While Sameer taught me entertainment, Rajesh taught me the business of entertainment,” he says. Today, Bigg Boss and Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi are two of their most successful shows, with the former currently on air in its eighth season and the latter’s sixth season about to go on air soon. Bigg Boss, of course, has its share of critics, but as Dhar points out, everyone’s hooked on to the show. “When we got Sunny Leone in the house for season five, my mom stopped going for her evening walks,” Dhar chuckles. When she told him that their relatives don’t like it, his response — ‘This means they are watching it’ — put an end to the discussion. The show also has its regional counterparts in Kannada and Bangla and they plan to introduce it in Telugu as well. The company has also ventured into fiction with shows such as Mile Jab Hum Tum, Sabki Laadli Bebo and Lagori on Star Pravah in Marathi and with the Telugu version of the Hindi blockbuster Kahaani, they ventured into the business of cinema last year. Their next move is into the digital space. “I love treading into unchartered territories. One has to swim in the river to reach the ocean,” he philosophises.
Family first
With so much on his plate, how does he find time for himself? At this, the producer shares yet another anecdote from his Popstars days. Between two seasons of the show, Dhar, too, had got a little star of his own — his baby daughter Anushka. “Work was really hectic, so when I went to inform Sameer about the birth of my daughter, his boss, an Australian, who was present in his office asked, ‘Deepak, how do you find the time?’ I didn’t know what to say,” he bursts into laughter.
Dhar loves to spend his free time with his family. He enjoys watching Hindi movies with his daughter on weekends, playing badminton with her in the mornings and going with her and his wife for vacations. “For the last season of Khatron Ke Khiladi, I took my family to Cape Town, and we had a lot of fun participating in adventure sports, like deep sea diving and sky diving,” he says. The doting father reveals that as a child, he owned two Alsatian dogs — Gabbar and Bullett — and now, it’s his daughter’s now wish to own a pet dog. “In Hyderabad, we had a huge house but here, our house isn’t large enough for one. Last year, I got parrots for her for Christmas, but she’s extracted a promise from me to get her a dog by Valentine’s Day,” he says. So will he? “Difficult to say, I’ve broken that promise twice already!” he quips.
Inside Track
Born: April 23, 1974
Education: Electrical engineering from Mumbai University
First job: As a logger at Magic Box Productions
Mantra in life: Take a leap of faith
Best advice I ever got: Sameer Nair’s words ‘It’s not about auditions, it’s about emotions’ and Rajesh Kamat's lessons on the business of entertainment
My favourites
Film: All of Amitabh Bachchan’s movies
Sport: Racquet sports including squash and badminton
Destination: Cape Town, South Africa
Tv show: From Endemol’s offering, it’s Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi. I also love Kaun Banega Crorepati
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