Rajeev Khandelwal: Delhi taught me how to survive on my own
Divya Kaushik | TNN | Updated: May 20, 2018, 09:10 IST
It isn't easy to get secrets out of Rajeev Khandelwal, but the actor claims that he is good at making other people talk and dig into their lives, and therefore, he has been enjoying being a host on TV. Rajeev says that "it would require too much coaxing to get me talking and I don't have many secrets in life, so I think I am best suited to be the host of chat shows. The actor was talking about being a host for the TV chat show, 'JuzzBaatt... Sangeen Se Namkeen Tak', which has different celebrity guests talking about undisclosed parts of their lives. The actor, who was recently in Delhi, was miffed with the fact that each time he does something on the small screen, it is termed as his comeback.' "Ever since I started doing films, I have been doing TV whenever an interesting concept was offered to me, be it 'Sacch Ka Saamna' or 'Reporters'. I think I made it clear to my audience long back that I really don't care about the medium I am working for. I laugh at people who say that I am making a comeback on TV. I ask them, that when Bachchan saab did a TV show, did you ask him whether he will make a comeback in films? When SRK hosts a show, do you ask him when will he do a film again? But when a TV actor does a film, the first thing he is asked is, Will you ever come back to TV? Rajeev says. His last TV appearance was on the fiction show Reporters in 2015.
Rajeev is currently hosting TV chat show 'JuzzBaatt... Sangeen Se Namkeen Tak'
Nawaz made me abuse and laugh in the middle of Lokhandwala market for my film 'Aamir''
Talking about interesting conversations that he has been having with guests on his show, Rajeev says, "Karanvir Bohra spoke about the casting couch and said that it exists for both men and women and you have no idea how to tackle it. I think it is important for us to talk about such issues openly. I don't have any experience of it, but I know a lot of people who have told me that some casting director asked for some favour.' I remember one film director, who assumed that I think very highly of him and I will do anything for him, did try his luck with me. He thought since he is a senior guy in the industry, no one can say no to him, but I was blunt to him and told him that I don't need to do any of that. The actor adds that one celebrity he would want to interview would be Nawazuddin Siddiqui as he "has a very interesting story to share. He says, "Only a few would know that Nawaz trained me for my role in 'Aamir'. I think the reason I looked so comfortable in the crowd in 'Aamir' was because Nawaz would take me to Lokhandwala market and would ask me to abuse and laugh, just to make me comfortable. I used to tell him that after the release of the film, it might happen that people would appreciate me for my acting, but they would not know that he was the person behind it. When his film released, I was the happiest. Now it's been a long time since we spoke.
The actor, who became an overnight star on TV with 'Kahiin To Hoga
', left many fans disappointed when he decided to leave his show 'Left Right Left' to do films. Rajeev says that if it is one show on TV that he would want to do again, it would be 'Left Right Left'. He says that since he comes from an army background, the show was close to his heart. "Moreover, I always wanted to join the army. My father was in the army and my brother is in the army. I came to Delhi for the first time to the UPSC office to request officials there to accept my Combined Defence Services form, which was submitted a day later than the last date for submission. It was when the form was rejected that I decided to stay in Delhi to try my luck in acting. So, when 'Left Right Left' was offered to me, I was very happy. One thing I was particular about was wearing the right uniform on the show, so I went to the Colaba cantonment area to get my uniform stitched, get the right stars on the uniform. One thing that irks me the most about shows and movies on defence forces is that they don't pay enough attention to details on the uniforms of the forces. The only film that comes to my mind that did its research well on uniforms was 'Prahar', featuring Nana Patekar. After doing 'Left Right Left', I keep telling my brother that I look better than him in uniform, says Rajeev.
Rajeev Khandelwal
From Ashok Vihar to GK II, my Delhi journey was really interesting'
The actor, who started his career from Delhi, says that he would never forget his journey from Ashok Vihar to Greater Kailash II. "I think that reflects how I financially grew in the city. Delhi is always special to me as I learnt here how to survive on my own. When I came to Delhi, I used to stay in Ashok Vihar, and as my financial status kept getting better, I moved from there to Moti Bagh, Green Park Extension and finally GK II. So you can imagine how wealthy I must have been then that I could afford a place to stay at in GK II. I remember Nauroji Nagar and Lajpat Nagar ke pakode. At Safdarjung Enclave, there was this small restaurant where I used to go often to eat. Shopping meant Sarojini Nagar. I remember celebrating a lot of my birthdays at Delhi Haat as I didn't have any friends here, I wasn't dating then. I remember I used to sit at the Nagaland stall, thinking that some day I will be a big actor, and today, if I try sitting there all by myself, I am sure I'll be surrounded by people, he says.
Edited by Shaina_b - 5 years ago
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