Showing posts with label Kahiin To Hoga. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kahiin To Hoga. Show all posts
I politely turned down a mythological show. I didn’t even ask what they wanted me to play-Rajeev Khandelwal
8:23 AM
Chaya Unnikrishnan (DNA; January 9, 2018)
Rajeev Khandelwal, who was last seen in the TV show Reporters, is all set to make a comeback after a two-year hiatus. He will foray into the digital space with a web series titled Haq Se, which is being produced by Ekta Kapoor. The duo will work together after a decade since Kahiin To Hoga was aired, which had made Rajeev a small-screen heartthrob. Here, he talks about exploring a new medium, doing films off the beaten track and why the content on TV doesn’t appeal to him...
From TV to films to web, you have explored everything.
Yes. For me, the medium doesn’t make any difference. I’m still acting and that’s what is important. With time and technology, the space will keep changing. Web has made its presence felt everywhere, after this something else may come up. The achievement should be to work on all platforms. Will I be accepted by the web, TV, film and theatre audience? Now, that would be challenging and fun.
Which medium do you find more challenging to work in?
Television is very demanding. We shoot episodes as the telecast is on and have to accommodate last-minute changes according to the audience feedback. On the other hand, I find that filming for cinema as well as web is the same because we get the script in advance, it is shot and then released either online or in theatres. But as an actor, all the three are same for me. Once I’m in front of the camera, I don’t think about the medium.
After Reporters, one would have expected to see you more on the small screen...
I got a lot of offers, but I didn’t find them exciting. Recently, I was approached for a mythological show, but I politely turned it down. I didn’t even ask what they wanted me to play because it didn’t interest me. I’m sure the shows are according to the taste that is prevalent, but the content doesn’t appeal to me. The kind of audience that used to watch Kahiin To Hoga, Kasautii Zindagii Kay or for that matter Banegi Apni Baat has deserted TV. They have either moved on to the web or are watching international series. When I’m surfing channels, I find a lot of similarity between serials, in fact, they look like copies! I think it’s one way of being in the rat race — if one show works, it leads to a lot of prototypes. I’m just hoping that something like Reporters, which was different, comes to me, then I will consider it.
You are known to take long gaps between projects and stay away from the limelight. Is it deliberate?
That’s how I am. I neither feel the need to have a PR machinery nor do I believe in posting pictures of my holidays, having an affair with somebody and breaking up! Except for Twitter, I’m not on social media. Also, work is not the be-all and end-all of my life. I feel people will not remember me if I’m not around. That way, I can start from scratch. It makes things a lot easier as there is no baggage. But whenever people do see me, they walk up and give me a smile. There is that excitement in them when I’m in a project and I wonder why. But I still feel the need to win them over with every project.
Though Reporters was not high on TRPs, you won over a new generation of viewers...
Yes, and they are surprisingly younger girls. When 15-year-old girls address me by my name and say they like me, I don’t know how to react!
What prompted you to do Haq Se?
Web is a different world and since people know I like to do diverse stuff, I was offered a lot of web shows. But I wasn’t sure how many people actually watch them. However, when I was approached for this series and was told that it is being handled by Ekta, I decided to go ahead. Ekta knows her job. When I was given the script, it blew me away. It is based on the classic novel Little Women and is basically about four sisters. Haq Se is set in Kashmir and the way it has been adapted, the Valley also becomes another character. I thought it was ambitious and my only concern was the budget because I had heard that money is tight on web shows. But the way Ekta has spent on it, the amount is bigger than any films I have been part of!
Tell us about your character in the series.
I play a doctor and like every other character in the series, he has his own quirks. What he is on the outside does not reflect what he is inside. You will see several sides to him — he is silent, brooding and idiosyncratic, but he has his reasons. There is a lot of turmoil, angst and pain in him, which you will know when you watch it.
After Kahiin To Hoga, there were problems between Ekta and you. How was that sorted out?
Ekta is one of the most professional producers and this is not the first time she and I made an attempt to work together after Kahiin To Hoga. A lot of people had a certain perception about her and me ever since I quit that show in 2005. But they didn’t know that throughout that phase, whenever both of us met at parties or events, she was polite and warm. There were a couple of occasions when we almost worked together, but it didn’t happen. So, when we met this time, I could see the same enthusiastic Ekta passionately giving me a narration the way she had done during Kahiin To Hoga. It felt as though there was no gap between us in terms of working with each other. Then, I met the same set of people at Balaji. I also caught up with Jeetuji (Jeetendra) and Shobha ji, which was great.
Sex used to help sell films, but not anymore-Rajeev Khandelwal
8:09 AM
Neha Maheshwri Bhagat (BOMBAY TIMES; July 28, 2016)
Rajeev Khandelwal is
antithesis of an an actor. He refuses to adhere to the rules of the
glamour industry and feels that an actor's status shouldn't be deter
mined by his swanky car or palatial house. Instead, it should be
assessed on how well he connects with his audience. Even as he focuses
on the big screen now, the man isn't in a mood to quit television yet.In
a freewheeling chat with Bombay Times, he speaks about his upcoming
film Fever, the growth of indie films and the power of the tube...
What made you think that this film is a hot proposition?
The script is exciting and original. It is loaded with suspense and has a great style of storytelling. The movie is set in Switzerland and I have three beautiful women opposite me.
Ever faked a fever to wriggle out of school or a meeting?
I used to put onions under my armpits hoping that it would result in fever, not just to escape school, but also my mom's fury. However, this Fever is not detrimental to your health and I hope everyone catches it.
It must have been nerve-wracking to romance three women (Gauahar Khan, Gemma Atkinson and Caterina Murino) from three different nationalities on screen.
I feel like an achiever (laughs). Men might envy me, but for an actor, it becomes a routine after a few days of shoot. Initially, I was apprehensive, but the women helped me to make the chemistry look natural. They put me at ease so that I could approach the intimate scenes like any other emotion. After that, I didn't even think twice about what my boundary should be.
Unlike your other films, there are a lot of intimate scenes in Fever. Do you think sex sells on screen?
Till a few years ago, sex used to help sell films, but not anymore. Today, people can easily watch it on several mediums. They'll not spend Rs 300 to catch glimpses of it in a film. Several movies laced with sexual innuendos and scenes haven't worked at the box office. People who have followed my work should come to watch this film expecting something different. Fever is more cerebral than physical.
Were you worried about the film facing any kind of censor trouble?
We were, but surprisingly, it passed without any cuts. It's strange that we can show bloodshed, but not love on screen. How can anyone decide that a couple can't kiss for the fifth time in a film? Having said that, the discussions and disagreements that the industry and the Censor Board have had in the past have only helped both the parties to evolve and co-exist.
What's the real Rajeev Khandelwal like?
I don't take myself seriously and that's not a calculated approach. I don't want people to look at me as an icon because it's a huge responsibility. I am an ordinary person and fallible. I don't have agendas in life and have no expectations from people. Professionally, I want to be in a comfortable position where I can choose roles that match my sensibilities and not look for means to be part of projects I want to be associated with. I have never thought of big banners but I hope I can make small banners big and that will be a real victory.
Given the overnight success of Aamir, don't you think your progress in Bollywood has been rather slow?
I don't live in a fool's paradise and I know my strengths and weaknesses. A lot of people wanted to work with me after Aamir, but I was clear that I wouldn't just take up anything. I didn't want people to cash in on the movie's popularity. I wasted two years when a film didn't see the light of the day and a senior director kept me on tenterhooks. I had to start afresh. The industry has been fair and I have got more than what I deserve. I'm aware that I'm not the finest actor around. I know I still need to evolve and grow but I have been accepted in both television and films. What more can I ask for?
Don't you wish to act in a typical Bollywood potboiler to join the big league?
It's not about being on top, but about being in the game. The biggest commercial films have been a debacle, whereas indie films have been successful because they are content driven. Besides, a typical Bollywood potboiler replete with a few jokes and dancing around the trees is dying cinema. Having said that, actors do require a great deal of talent to pull it off since it doesn't exist in the real world and there is nothing around you to derive inspiration from. Now, even my contemporaries are doing content-driven films. As for me, I am happy being part of different and more thoughtful cinema.
Would you like to change anything about your career, maybe the films or shows that didn't work?
Given a choice, I would not take any other route because I have learnt a lot along the way. I wouldn't call any of my films a mistake, but I do feel that I should have been more careful about the people I worked with and not let my emotions come in the way. I wish I had done a bit of research on the producers behind certain projects. But everything, including failures, helps you grow and learn something new about the industry. With all honesty, I don't regret what I have done in my career as every decision has been mine.
Why have TV actors, barring a few, failed to make it big in Bollywood?
Why don't we ask film actors who work on television the same question? It's a media perception that TV is smaller than films and television actors are made to believe that it's a smaller medium. Bollywood biggies have also failed on television (fiction shows), but nobody seems to have an issue with that. A film actor probably entertains you for five days, but a TV artiste entertains the audience throughout the year and yet is made to feel smaller. That's so ironical. If an actor is genuinely treating all the mediums equally and is committed to his craft, he will be accepted by viewers irrespective of the medium he is on. I treat TV with immense respect. My battle has been to change the mindset that television is a smaller medium. That day is not far off when a TV actor will judge a reality show.
Do you think your previous film didn't work because you were also seen on television?
Samrat & Co. didn't work because it was badly released by the producers. Even hoardings weren't installed outside cinema halls. It didn't fail because I was also seen on TV. I was doing Sach Ka Saamna (SAS) during Shaitan and both worked.
What about your last show, Reporters, which didn't generate high ratings?
It started on a good note and enjoyed its share of viewership, especially abroad and in the digital space. The storyline underwent a change and digressed towards the end, but I was contractually bound to finish the series. However, the effort towards the show was genuine and our approach didn't change till the end.
During Kahiin Toh Hoga, you were also touted as the next Rajesh Khanna...
I won't play according to that perception built around me. I don't want to be a victim of it and get swayed by it. I still get attention. Probably not the kind I got during Kahiin Toh Hoga, a show which I left consciously. I didn't repeat my role of Sujal because I didn't want to be in my comfort zone or bask in my past glory. After Aamir, I realised that I wanted to win over the same set of fans with the kind of work I do and not with the character they relate to. People connect with me with as an actor now. Had I been addicted to that kind of fame, I would not have picked up unconventional projects.
What made you think that this film is a hot proposition?
The script is exciting and original. It is loaded with suspense and has a great style of storytelling. The movie is set in Switzerland and I have three beautiful women opposite me.
Ever faked a fever to wriggle out of school or a meeting?
I used to put onions under my armpits hoping that it would result in fever, not just to escape school, but also my mom's fury. However, this Fever is not detrimental to your health and I hope everyone catches it.
It must have been nerve-wracking to romance three women (Gauahar Khan, Gemma Atkinson and Caterina Murino) from three different nationalities on screen.
I feel like an achiever (laughs). Men might envy me, but for an actor, it becomes a routine after a few days of shoot. Initially, I was apprehensive, but the women helped me to make the chemistry look natural. They put me at ease so that I could approach the intimate scenes like any other emotion. After that, I didn't even think twice about what my boundary should be.
Unlike your other films, there are a lot of intimate scenes in Fever. Do you think sex sells on screen?
Till a few years ago, sex used to help sell films, but not anymore. Today, people can easily watch it on several mediums. They'll not spend Rs 300 to catch glimpses of it in a film. Several movies laced with sexual innuendos and scenes haven't worked at the box office. People who have followed my work should come to watch this film expecting something different. Fever is more cerebral than physical.
Were you worried about the film facing any kind of censor trouble?
We were, but surprisingly, it passed without any cuts. It's strange that we can show bloodshed, but not love on screen. How can anyone decide that a couple can't kiss for the fifth time in a film? Having said that, the discussions and disagreements that the industry and the Censor Board have had in the past have only helped both the parties to evolve and co-exist.
What's the real Rajeev Khandelwal like?
I don't take myself seriously and that's not a calculated approach. I don't want people to look at me as an icon because it's a huge responsibility. I am an ordinary person and fallible. I don't have agendas in life and have no expectations from people. Professionally, I want to be in a comfortable position where I can choose roles that match my sensibilities and not look for means to be part of projects I want to be associated with. I have never thought of big banners but I hope I can make small banners big and that will be a real victory.
Given the overnight success of Aamir, don't you think your progress in Bollywood has been rather slow?
I don't live in a fool's paradise and I know my strengths and weaknesses. A lot of people wanted to work with me after Aamir, but I was clear that I wouldn't just take up anything. I didn't want people to cash in on the movie's popularity. I wasted two years when a film didn't see the light of the day and a senior director kept me on tenterhooks. I had to start afresh. The industry has been fair and I have got more than what I deserve. I'm aware that I'm not the finest actor around. I know I still need to evolve and grow but I have been accepted in both television and films. What more can I ask for?
Don't you wish to act in a typical Bollywood potboiler to join the big league?
It's not about being on top, but about being in the game. The biggest commercial films have been a debacle, whereas indie films have been successful because they are content driven. Besides, a typical Bollywood potboiler replete with a few jokes and dancing around the trees is dying cinema. Having said that, actors do require a great deal of talent to pull it off since it doesn't exist in the real world and there is nothing around you to derive inspiration from. Now, even my contemporaries are doing content-driven films. As for me, I am happy being part of different and more thoughtful cinema.
Would you like to change anything about your career, maybe the films or shows that didn't work?
Given a choice, I would not take any other route because I have learnt a lot along the way. I wouldn't call any of my films a mistake, but I do feel that I should have been more careful about the people I worked with and not let my emotions come in the way. I wish I had done a bit of research on the producers behind certain projects. But everything, including failures, helps you grow and learn something new about the industry. With all honesty, I don't regret what I have done in my career as every decision has been mine.
Why have TV actors, barring a few, failed to make it big in Bollywood?
Why don't we ask film actors who work on television the same question? It's a media perception that TV is smaller than films and television actors are made to believe that it's a smaller medium. Bollywood biggies have also failed on television (fiction shows), but nobody seems to have an issue with that. A film actor probably entertains you for five days, but a TV artiste entertains the audience throughout the year and yet is made to feel smaller. That's so ironical. If an actor is genuinely treating all the mediums equally and is committed to his craft, he will be accepted by viewers irrespective of the medium he is on. I treat TV with immense respect. My battle has been to change the mindset that television is a smaller medium. That day is not far off when a TV actor will judge a reality show.
Do you think your previous film didn't work because you were also seen on television?
Samrat & Co. didn't work because it was badly released by the producers. Even hoardings weren't installed outside cinema halls. It didn't fail because I was also seen on TV. I was doing Sach Ka Saamna (SAS) during Shaitan and both worked.
What about your last show, Reporters, which didn't generate high ratings?
It started on a good note and enjoyed its share of viewership, especially abroad and in the digital space. The storyline underwent a change and digressed towards the end, but I was contractually bound to finish the series. However, the effort towards the show was genuine and our approach didn't change till the end.
During Kahiin Toh Hoga, you were also touted as the next Rajesh Khanna...
I won't play according to that perception built around me. I don't want to be a victim of it and get swayed by it. I still get attention. Probably not the kind I got during Kahiin Toh Hoga, a show which I left consciously. I didn't repeat my role of Sujal because I didn't want to be in my comfort zone or bask in my past glory. After Aamir, I realised that I wanted to win over the same set of fans with the kind of work I do and not with the character they relate to. People connect with me with as an actor now. Had I been addicted to that kind of fame, I would not have picked up unconventional projects.
I am a huge fan of my father-in-law - Rajeev Khandelwal
8:09 AM
Priya Gupta (BOMBAY TIMES; April 5, 2014)
Rajeev Khandelwal, 39, is practical, emotional and resilient. He is secure and a private person and he prefers to work harder as against knocking on the doors of a director to give him work. He was launched by Balaji Telefilms and shot to fame with Kahiin To Hoga. His Sacch Ka Saamna touched a chord and his first film Aamir won him critical appreciation. Ahead of his upcoming detective thriller Samrat & Co., he talks to Bombay Times about his happy wife, his passion for adventure and how he would do anything to keep his father fit. Excerpts:
When did you realise that you wanted to be an actor?
When I was in Class III, I was performing a show on stage and was miserable in it. I came down from the stage and said, ‘One day, I will be an actor.’ When I was in Class IX, my dad took me for an audition to Punjab Doordarshan and I got selected, but since it was a 90-day outdoor shoot, my dad did not allow me and I remember tearing that script in a very filmi manner and thinking to myself that someday I would show this man that I can be an actor. While I was born and brought up in Jaipur, my dad was in the army so we travelled all over. I went to St Xavier’s, Ahmedabad, where I did my college. During my final years, I did not know what to do in life and had given up my dream of getting into the industry and sent my form to the UPSC office to get into the army. But my form reached a day late and to apply next, I would have needed to wait for six months. My parents at this time were living in Delhi and the idea of staying at home doing nothing for six months was torturous. I remember I was standing outside the UPSC office at Prithviraj Road and decided that I would rather make an effort in the field that I was interested in and fail, as against sitting at home waiting. I was thrown out of the house and was very angry then with my parents. But I had self-respect and did not want to fail and go back. I was staying with some drivers at my cousin’s friend’s flat in Delhi that was lying vacant. I would share a common bathroom with the driver. He would have paan and bidi and every time I went to the bathroom, I would clean it with phenyl first before using it. I did not have enough money to eat three meals. I would have raw milk and egg for breakfast and have my dinner at 6.30 pm so that I could sleep well. I would get paintings from Jaipur and come and sell them in Delhi. I was not in touch with my parents for two years, as they were not happy that I had left home. But I would miss them badly and so I would visit Jaipur and yet not go to my house. I would go to my cousin’s place and see my house and cry. My younger brother would secretly come and meet me and give me his 300 pocket money. He loved me and I owe so much to him. I then started assisting someone who was making documentaries in Delhi. I used to stay in his office. He knew I was bright and he started giving me independent documentaries to make. I got in touch with my parents after three years, when my first documentary was telecast on television. I bought a cordless phone for them from my first earnings. My father knew that I was bright and was waiting for me to fail and return so that I could go back on track. I was also dating this girl, who was my partner, and we started making documentaries together. Since I was dating her, I had no problem with the company being in her name and invested my trust in her, till she one day cheated me and I was left penniless. I borrowed money and decided to come to Mumbai in 2002. Had I not lost all my money, I may have never come. Despite coming to Mumbai, I would return to Delhi every 15 days as Mumbai would scare me. During one of my visits to Delhi, Balaji was auditioning for their new show. Entire Delhi seemed to have turned up and right from rickshawallahs to paanwallahs, everyone was there. Four days later, I get a call from Balaji that I was selected for Kahiin To Hoga. That was the first time in 2003 when I was welcomed with pride at home, back in Jaipur.
How did you meet your wife Manjiri?
I knew her older sister, who was working as the PR for one of my shows and we struck a bond. She would often talk about her younger sister being an athlete, who drove SUVs, and those were qualities that excited me about a woman. I would often tease her and say, ‘Milana apni behen se.’ After four years, she once introduced me to her sister and I fell in love with her. I liked her for being just herself and found her interesting and exciting. For the first time in my life, I asked a woman for her number, that too through her sister. I sent her a message and she replied a day later. As an actor, you tend to assume subconsciously that the person will reply earlier than she did and we went on our first date. We dated for a year-and-a-half before we got married. I love outdoor activities and do a lot of camping. I have a specialised car in which I can put my tent and drive around. I have done many trips all by myself in the past, where I would pitch my tent next to a flowing stream, barbeque something, looking at the stars at night above me. My wife was not exposed to it. When we first went camping together, she agreed to stay in a makeshift loo, but I know that she was not enjoying it then. Now, in hindsight, she feels that it was her best trip ever, driving from Jaipur to Chandigarh to Leh, coming down from Srinagar. I know that it can be too much for anyone not used to it. Now, we have a pact that for every camping trip we do, I have to compensate her with a luxury one. She knows that I respect her immensely as an individual, but she doesn’t like the fact that I don’t have a PR and that I can be moody, where I can sometimes totally be just consumed in my thoughts. I love spending time with myself. I can spend days and months with myself. We have a house in Goa and she knows I value my space and does not come in the way of that, but what she doesn’t like sometimes, is my regime in life. I will get up early, have dinner at a certain time and am a cleanliness freak. And while she knows I am extremely attached to her, she also knows that in many ways I can be a detached person.
Let’s talk about your father?
He was a typical army person, who would not open up to his kids when we were young. But he changed after we left home. I used to live in a 2-BHK accommodation earlier, so my parents would not come that often before to stay with me in Mumbai, but now that I have a bigger place, they come more often. My parents and in-laws enjoy a great relationship and they take trips all over the world together. It was my dream to take my parents all over the world. But my father-in-law is ahead of me and has shown them at least a quarter of the world. My father loves my work but would like me to be a little more pushy and wants to see me more on screen. I don’t claim it and, in fact, tell him all the time how my brothers are the best, but he knows that I care for him a lot. I have changed my whole house for my father and I want it to be comfortable for him. I want him to travel business class all his life. In 2008, when he was going in for his bypass surgery and he looked at me, I was trying my best to control myself, but couldn't. I have never been close to him and even now, when he calls me up, he will not say that he is missing me, but I know what he want to tells me. His health really bothers me and every time his knee hurts, it bothers me. I want my father to be fit forever and while I am not a mahaan insaan, I know that I am doing my bit for it.
Why do you hesitate to reach out to directors for work?
I am extremely resilient, but the most challenging time for me was after Aamir. I had signed another film which consumed a year of my time, but the film did not get released as it had gone wrong. In that period, I reached out to a commercially big director, who despite signing me kept me hanging for eight months, but did not make the film. I decided that I would not reach out and instead would just work harder, so that my work could get me more work.
Who is your emotional anchor?
I don’t have an emotional anchor though I love my wife the most in the world. I love the fact that she is a happy person, who can be happy doing anything. Even if she is cooking, she is happy. It gives me a lot of happiness if I know that I have done something that has made her happy. My father-in-law is a fantastic person, father, husband and friend. He is very balanced. If I call him even at 3 in the morning and say, let’s go for a ride on a bike, he will be game. I am a huge fan of my father-in-law.
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