Guwahati: It’s Sushant Singh Rajput’s birth anniversary. The actor would have turned 36 today, 21 January. Sushant’s career, which spanned about 14 years, will always be a remarkable one.
The actor started with television and rose to fame with the TV soap Pavitra Rishta. In an interview, he had said, “I got all that I wanted after I started working in TV. The money, the fame, recognition and all the female attention.”
Sushant dropped out of an engineering college in his final year to become an actor. He came to Mumbai and started doing theatre. During that time, he also joined Shaimak Davar’s dance classes, all the while looking for jobs and a project to work on.
Sushant Singh Rajput was a background dancer at various award functions, including IIFA, and he performed with stars like Shah Rukh Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Shahid Kapoor and more.
It was a dream come through for Sushant Singh Rajput when he was offered a key role in the movie Kai Po Che directed by Abhishek Kapoor . which was adapted from Chetan Bhagat‘s novel, The 3 Mistakes of My Life. Since then he has launched himself to soaring new heights in the film industry. He went on to star in the romantic comedy Shuddh Desi Romance (2013) and played the legendary detective in the thriller Detective Byomkesh Bakshy! (2015) followed by biopic drama on cricketer Dhoni, M.S.Dhoni : The Untold Story in 2016. In 2019, he was seen in Nitesh Tiwari’s super-hit Chhichhore.
As we celebrate his birthday today, let us check out Sushant Singh Rajput’s contribution to the Indian Cinema
Kai Po Che (2006)
Based on novel “3 mistakes of my life” by Chetan Bhagat , Kai Po Che was the second attempt by Abhishek Kapoor after the brilliant Rock On. Kai Po Che was sort of a phenomenon, and everyone looked forward to more powerful performances from Sushant from this point onwards. ai Po Che was a big “Hit” at the box office, collecting a solid Rs 43.58 crore, against a budget of Rs 30 crore. The film made Sushant Singh Rajput an overnight star.
Shuddh Desi Romance (2013)
With his second film, Shuddh Desi Romance (2013), the actor proved that he was not just another Bollywood hero. With this non-formulaic and non-conforming rom-com, Sushant proved he was willing to take risks, and make a distinct space for himself. The highlights of Shuddh Desi Romance was chemistry between Sushant Singh Rajput, Parineeti Chopra along with Rishi Kapoor who will tickle your funny bone with his marvelous acting. The beautiful location of Jaipur makes the film even more eye-catching.
Detective Byomkesh Bakshy! (2015)
Sushant continued off the beaten track to star in Dibakar Banerjee’s Detective Byomkesh Bakshy! (2015), slipping into the legendary Bengali sleuth’s role with ease. After a modern-day romance, Sushant fully immersed himself into the 1940s’ hairstyle, body language and accent. The role allowed the actor to step in and embellish the character with flourishes and tics. His take on the Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay creation was far more action-oriented than the iconic Rajit Kapur version.
MS Dhoni: The Untold Story (2016)
This was the film that launched the actor into stardom. While the film remains a hagiographic portrayal of the Indian skipper, Rajput’s performance cannot be faulted. The actor captured the mannerisms, presence and personality of MS Dhoni like never before. A passionate cricket fan, the actor had the opportunity to recreate some of the most iconic moments from Indian cricket in the last decade. A self-confessed Dhoni fan, Sushant watched hours of footage to get his mannerisms right, and trained extensively in cricket for the role. It was the emotional mettle and calm that highlighted this personality change. The efforts paid off at the box office.
Kedarnath (2018)
Kedarnath was an inter-faith love story between a Hindu Brahmin girl whose family owns a lodge and runs a shop near the Kedarnath Temple in Uttarakhand mountains. Sushant played a humble Muslim boy who is a ‘pithoo’ (porter). It served as Sara Ali Khan’s debut vehicle, and reunited Sushant with his Kai Po Che director Abhishek Kapoor. The actor was praised for his nuanced performance, being the solid support a newcomer needed in a co-star for her first film.
Sonchiriya (2019)
In 2019, he headlined the multi-starrer Sonchiriya, directed by Abhishek Chaubey. Set in ravines of the Chambal valley against the backdrop of the Emergency, it tells the tale of dacoits. The film’s entire cast, including Sushant, was praised for their top-notch performances. Held up by some powerful performances by Manoj Bajpayee, Ranvir Shorey and Bhumi Pednekar, the film ventured into grey areas, exploring themes such as caste, politics, power and idealism. In this film, Sushant Singh Rajput embodied this idealism and the rebellion that it births. Rajput’s character Lakhan Singh was a man who must choose between his cause and doing what is right. Sadly, the audiences gave the film — and Rajput’s searing performance — a miss in theatres and lost out on a wonderful performance that underlined the craft of Rajput.
Chhichhore (2019)
To have one successful film a year is a success. For Rajput, his penultimate year saw two major successes. Nitesh Tiwari’s Chhichhore was a moving coming-of-age drama that captured the highs, lows, and joys of a group of mediocre students. In an age where people seek constant success and validation, Rajput’s performance as a father trying to convince his son that losing is part and parcel of life was touching. Like always, the actor played the idealist of the group, Anni, who unites everyone to attempt something beyond their reach. But it is the older version that truly captured the actor’s ability. The sensitive portrayal of a father struggling to relate with his son, while trying desperately to prevent the boy from making a mistake, is moving.
Dil Bechar (2020)
Mukesh Chhabra’s directorial debut would have been one of the highlights of the actor’s career. Sadly, it proved to be his last film role. A remake of the tween romance The Fault In Our Stars, the film brought to the fore the actor’s sensitivity and easy charm. Playing the irrepressible Manny, Rajput was uplifting, charming and entertaining. It is quite tragic to think the actor was going through several issues of his own while putting on a smiling, happy exterior for his character.
On 14 June 2020, Sushant Singh Rajput passed away. The actor’s sudden death shocked the nation and left his fans mourning for the loss.
At various press conferences, Sushant spoke about how he lived his life and tried to fulfil his goals. “I don’t think about the future. I live in the present, that’s what matters,” he said.
A star shined for one last time. The light is so bright, that it has brought tears to every eye across the nation once again.
Happy Birthday, Sushant. We will always miss you.
