Aastha Atray Banan (MID-DAY; June 2, 2019)

"We are in a happy marriage, but are constantly living under fear," says Mini Mathur, as she throws a glance at Cyrus Sahukar, who is sitting across her. "We feel that if we don't work on our relationship, we might end up like our friends, who are divorced. And so, we seek therapy." Mathur is talking about Amazon Prime Video's new original, Mind The Malhotras, adapted from the Israeli show La Familia, releasing this Friday. She and Sahukar play the onscreen couple, Shefali and Rishabh Malhotra, who have three kids — twin girls and a boy.

Directed by Sahil Sangha and Ajay Bhuyan, each episode deals with a different kind of issue that the Malhotras put in front of their therapist — from sex-life problems to Rishabh's annoying mother to dealing with the kids. "It's written in a smart way, and talks of all the pillars of a relationship. What I like about our characters, is that they are regular people. They have all the colourful selfishness, niceness, and weirdness of normal human beings," explains Sahukar.

We are chatting with the two on a hot afternoon at the chic Soho House in Juhu over tea and avocado toast, and it's easy to see their camaraderie. It's VJ/presenter/emcee Mathur's first outing as an actor, and she has long-time friend Sahukar along for the ride. "We came to Mumbai on the same flight decades ago, when we both got a job at MTV. I have known Cyrus since his 17th birthday, so when I heard he was going to play my husband, I had to say yes. When we tell each other, do it this way, there is no malicious intent. It's about making it better for each other."

Sahukar is no stranger to comedy, especially if you remember his avatar as Semi Girebaal. He, thus, became a perfect fit for Rishabh, who he describes as the good guy. "He doesn't really get his family, but he wants to. He wants to do the right thing. Mini was a perfect Shefali, because she is a doer in real life, and in the show as well. If you can marry character to a personality like in her case, there's nothing greater than that," he says. Mathur adds, "It was so good to have him around. One day, someone shouted loudly before a shot, and I was flustered. I asked him 'how do I get back to being in a 'funny' mood now?' He wasn't even bothered! I had to step out, breathe and come back."

The show also offers a funny take on modern marriages. "When the therapist tells them to talk, they figure that they have very little to talk about," says Mathur. "It's like 'I like you, but I have nothing to say'. I don't think it's even about marriage, it's about every relationship. It's the anxiety a couple is faced with, when a TV series they have been watching together, ends," says Sahukar with a deadpan face, as we all crack up.

Ask them what they brought to the show from their own personal experiences, given that Mathur has been married for 21 years and Sahukar has been in a serious relationship for six years, Mathur says, "One of the reasons I jumped at the idea of playing Shefali was because she is so relatable. I asked the makers 'have you put a CCTV in my house?' We did extensive readings of the characters and we have actually put our own filters there. I have said 'I don't think Shefali will react like this'. We are not exactly the same people, but we tried to make it more real and 3D."

But is the show going to make sense to a society, which is constantly getting put off by the idea of love and marriage? In a cynical world, it could be hard selling a story of two people trying to work it out. Mathur is a firm believer in marriage, and says, "I feel there is a merit in love, and that's why the show is so special. Nobody is made for each other, but it's constant understanding. It's not easy, and I have seen people who are lonely, and that's no fun. It's always nice to be in a symbiotic relationship."

Sahukar immediately interrupts, "Of course, it's going to be difficult. You can't even like yourself all the time. How will you like someone else for 50 years?"  In the end, all they want is for the show to find resonance with the audience. As Sahukar sums it up, "It's been a lovely experience trying to get it out — like life actually, sometimes it's down, sometimes it's up, and sometimes you get it right!"

Kusumita Das (MID-DAY; June 25, 2017)

It's not easy for two Mumbai dudes to set off to a land of no network and very little oxygen, drive nearly 1,000 kilometres, sometimes on no roads and manage to not miss the city they left behind. The 10 days that Cyrus Sahukar and Kunal Kapoor spent in the mountains for their travel show, Great Escape with Kunal and Cyrus, had them driving from Dharamshala to Spiti Valley, and catching up more than they have in the 18 years of their friendship. Yet, they admit that on occasion, the adventure was more than they gambled for — like the time they were stranded for two hours, staring at boulders falling from the mountains.


Sahukar says this photo was taken as he entered the Key Monastery on the last day of the trip. "We were lucky since we got to visit their kitchen and even have lunch served by the monks. Especially memorable were the chants."
“When you come back and tell people, you drove on no roads, they think you are trying to be dramatic,” Sahukar says. “I feel places like Leh-Ladakh, which are remote, are still easier to get information about, but Spiti is not one of those places. There is no airport there. It’s a very tough terrain. You need to get out there and make it happen. Throughout our time there, I felt like we were in Mad Max Fury Road.”


This was a small pottery village in Spiti, called Andretta, where Sahukar and Kapoor ran into Dennis Harp, the art director of Michael Jackson's Thriller. "He just decided to slow it down and move to the mountains in India. I also tried my hand at pottery — I made a vase that I am now obsessed with. It is ugly but it's mine," says Sahukar.

While Kapoor did the driving, Sahukar “was changing tyres, cleaning stuff and navigating”. One of the highpoints of the trip, quite literally for him, was jumping off a mountain in Bir Biling, the second highest paragliding spot in the world. It was his first time. That out of the way, he did not even hesitate to try out the basket cable, a popular mode of commute among locals, between one mountain top to another. “You sit in a small basket attached to a cable, and are manually pulled by a person on the other side. I pulled myself, because Kunal lost interest after a point. I was swinging between two mountains,” Sahukar chuckles, adding that the mountains have made a “philosopher” out of him. “Two days more, and I would have been levitating.”



"It was my first time and I am not even your regular adventure-sports guy. I am more of a let's-hike-to-a-stream-and-camp person. This guy kept talking about heads splattering on walls during paragliding. It was literally a leap of faith from Bir Biling," says Sahukar.

There were moments when Kapoor and he would split up and do their own thing, just to get two perspectives on the same place. “I think we all have this childlike quality of quiet exploration and it could be just a walk, staring at cows grazing. It sounds lame, but I was truly enjoying my company after a long time. And, having no network is a blessing — I had long conversations with myself,” he laughs.


This selfie was taken after playing hide-n-seek with children at Nako village

“It was my first time and I am not even your regular adventure-sports guy. I am more of a let’s-hike-to-a-stream-and-camp person. This guy kept talking about heads splattering on walls during paragliding. It was literally a leap of faith from Bir Biling,” says Sahukar.


At Teerthan Valley, the two gave fly fishing a go. "We sat by the river trying to catch fish. We didn't succeed, but I caught a fly," says Sahukar

Sanyukta Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; June 21, 2017)

MUMBAI MIRROR (May 13, 2017)

Sanyukta Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; December 15, 2016)


Arunoday Singh tied the knot with girlfriend of two-and-a-half years, Lee Elton, in a traditional Hindu ceremony at his parents’ bungalow in Bhopal. The bride’s parents and grandparents flew down from Newfoundland in Canada on Sunday. Arunoday’s photographer sister, Ambika, flew back to her home from New York earlier this month and his youngest sister, Akriti, was part of the wedding prep since last week.

Calling the three-day celebration a “A Day-Lee affair” close friends of the groom, including singer Ankur Tewari, actor-host Cyrus Sahukar, host Gaurav Kapur, newlyweds Yudhisthtar Urs and wife Aditi Mehra, cinematographer Vikash Nowlakha, model-VJ Sheetal Mallar, actress Sarah Jane Dias and actor-writer Suhaas Ahuja descended at his home on Sunday and called out the happy couple for consistently looking fabulous.

“Arunoday got married in the home where he grew up. All the food was prepared by local chefs and his dogs were part of the baraat. Everybody lazed around near the farm, got mehendi applied on their hands and sang Beyonce tracks at the top of their voice. It was spectacular yet homely,” reveals a guest.

While the mehendi, sangeet and shaadi were at home, the reception was hosted at Bhopal’s Shivrajpur Palace. “The garden was beautifully decorated and drones flew over the couple to capture every moment of their special day. The celebrations ended on Tuesday night with the groom and bride, with their families, releasing fire lanterns into the sky,” adds the guest. The actor was last seen fighting Hrithik Roshan in Ashutosh Gowariker’s Mohenjo Daro. He had clicked instantly with 29-year-old Lee when they met at a yoga retreat in Goa. They began to live together in Goa where Lee now runs a successful garden restaurant. The couple juggle between their sprawling Juhu apartment and their cozy nook in Goa. “Home is wherever Lee is,” a lovelorn Arunoday had asserted.

Hiren Kotwani (BOMBAY TIMES; October 20, 2014)