On Sushant Singh Rajput’s birthday, here’s looking at his career and his passion for the stars.
Sushant Singh Rajput’s journey didn’t begin with Manav from the popular television show, Pavitra Rishta. It didn’t even begin from his role as Preet, a supporting character in the 2008 show Kis Des Mein Hai Mera Dil—it began after he dropped out of engineering college as he was determined to act. He took up numerous odd jobs and worked in theatre, till he was noticed by Balaji telefilms.After becoming a household name, he found his route to Bollywood and debuted with Kai Po Che in 2013, and worked hard to become one of the most established actors in the film industry, with a range of films. His death in June 2020 marked a turning point in the industry.
ry—most of it being decidedly unfavourable—but he became glowing inspiration for many such aspirants, a man who built an extraordinary life from ordinary beginnings. There was so much about him that became even more prominent after his passing, his musings on life, his love for the stars and the mysteries of science. Sushant became a revered enigma for his fans, owing to his deep philosophical beliefs on success and the box office, mixed with his trademark sense of humour. Outwardly, he maintained a nonchalant stance about the box office; he would say that if Friday didn’t see a good opening for his film, he would ‘be fine’ by Monday. “Friday kuch bhi ho, Monday ko main theek ho jaata hu. Mera Monday motivaion barkarar rehta hai. Mujhe zyada darr nahi lagta kisi cheez se,” he once said airily to India Today. He enjoyed a challenge——a role that could potentially backfire was thrilling. “I take up roles that I feel I would fail in and then it becomes like a challenge for me to outdo myself. My philosophy of success in life is to find different ways of failing, I would fail three to four times but the fifth time when I succeed it would be my personal experience, it would help me emerge as a person,” he once told IANS. Sushant’s career trajectory showed that he traversed a wide range of roles—-be it romantic comedies like Shuddh Desi Romance.