BREAKING: Rajeev Khandelwal addresses 'UNSUCESSFUL film career' label, "I could hear chatter..."

If you are Gen Z, you likely know Rajeev Khandelwal from his recent appearances across television and OTT. But for 90s kids who grew up on daily soaps, he was not just another actor. He was Sujal. And Sujal from Kahiin Toh Hoga was an emotion.

Back when Indian television ruled household evenings, Rajeev’s brooding charm in the Ekta Kapoor show turned him into a phenomenon. Despite being part of the show for barely a year, he became one of the most talked about faces on the small screen. Then, at the peak of that popularity, he made a move very few would dare to attempt.

Instead of signing a glossy commercial entertainer, Rajeev chose Aamir for his big screen debut. The film was intense, minimal, and far removed from mainstream Bollywood formulas. It earned strong critical acclaim and proved that a television star could headline a content driven film without leaning on spectacle. At the time, it felt like a bold blueprint for transitioning from TV to cinema.

After Aamir happened, I could hear chatter around me about how people were saying, 'oh this is the first boy from TV and all'.

- Rajeev Khandelwal on chatter about him after his debut film, Aamir

From TV Heartthrob To Risk Taker On The Big Screen

After Aamir, expectations around Rajeev’s film career soared. Industry chatter labelled him as the first big television name to successfully cross over into serious cinema. But what followed was a series of unconventional and sometimes commercially underwhelming choices.

He appeared in films like Shaitan, Soundtrack, Will You Marry Me?, Table No. 21, Ishk Actually, Samrat & Co., and Fever. Among these, Table No. 21 found noticeable box office traction, while several others struggled commercially.

As conversations around his trajectory grew louder, many wondered whether his film career had stalled. Yet Rajeev never seemed rattled. He returned to television with the bold reality show Sach Ka Saamna, which itself sparked nationwide debate. He also took on fiction projects like Reporters, proving that medium never dictated his choices.

In an exclusive conversation with India Forums, we asked Rajeev how he viewed the chatter around his career. Did he feel the pressure of expectations after Aamir? Did the talk of an “unsuccessful” film run affect him?

He answered without hesitation.

“Honestly, I was just having fun. I wasn't thinking so much about myself as much as others were thinking about me, I guess. Simple. After Aamir happened, I could hear chatter around me about how people were saying, 'oh this is the first boy from TV and all'. But honestly, the chatter that followed that, I wasn't really concerned about it and I didn't take that seriously, and I don't take that seriously even now. I just want to go with the way I want to go about it and now how the world measures it. And that has been the way I have lived my career and my life. It wasn't ever a factor that after doing TV, now you did a film, and now you will do only films. But I keep saying and reminding that after doing a film, I immediately did TV in the form of Sach Ka Saamna. So, I guess, each time anyone was trying to think that now he will do this or that, I would only do things that would excite me, be it on TV, be it in movies, or be it on OTT.”

For Rajeev, the idea of sticking to one medium never made sense. He resisted the invisible hierarchy that often places cinema above television. His approach has always been interest driven rather than perception driven.

Redefining Success On His Own Terms

When asked directly about the perception that his film career did not meet expectations, Rajeev addressed the definition of success itself.

“Everyone has a different way of measuring success. I know, at times, people have a collective definition of success, and I never wanted to fall prey to that belief of people who would think 'success means this' or 'success means that'. That's not for me.”

In an industry obsessed with numbers, rankings, and box office verdicts, Rajeev’s stance feels refreshingly detached. He neither chased validation nor rejected television to fit a conventional narrative. Instead, he built a career that moves fluidly between platforms.

From being Sujal, the ultimate television heartthrob, to headlining an experimental film like Aamir, to hosting one of India’s most controversial reality shows, Rajeev Khandelwal’s journey has rarely followed the expected script. And if his own words are anything to go by, that unpredictability is exactly how he prefers it.