Gurmeet Choudhary on Sushant Singh Rajput’s death: ‘My friends call me up, ask me not to take the wrong step, assure me they will watch my films’
Gurmeet Choudhary said that it was Sushant Singh Rajput who paved way for TV stars to move to films.
Actor Gurmeet Choudhary, who transitioned from television to films and created a fair space for himself, has said it is Sushant Singh Rajput’s success that smoothened the path for TV actors to move to films. Sushant, who was found dead on June 14 in his Mumbai flat, is often cited as one of the most successful transitions from the small screen to the silver screen.
Speaking with Navbharat Times in an interview, Gurmeet said, “Sushant has paved the way for us in Bollywood. If he would not have been successful there, perhaps the filmmakers would have rejected me too, stating why would they pay to watch me in theatres since they have already seen me a lot on TV. Sushant changed Bollywood’s approach to TV stars. After Sushant broke that wall, I was able to make a Bollywood debut with the Bhatt camp film, Khamoshiyaan.”
Gurmeet also weighed in on the insecurity felt by the family members and loved ones of actors in current times. “My family and friends call me up and ask me not to take the wrong step and assure me that they will watch my films, come what may. This is a very competitive industry and everyone is scared that their career might finish if they deliver a flop film,” he told the Hindi daily.
Gurmeet has worked in a few Hindi films including Paltan and Wajah Tum Ho. He did not stop working in TV shows after making the big move. After making a mark with his debut show Yeh Meri Life Hai and winning the Nach Baliye 5 trophy, Gurmeet also worked in Geet Hui Sabse Parayi and Punar Vivah.
About finding work in films, Gurmeet had recently told Hindustan Times in an interview, “My dream was to be on the 70mm screen. But after sincerely doing TV for years, there came a point when I felt that I should try films because I wanted to take on a new challenge in life. I had achieved a lot on TV and I wanted to do a film. And during that time I was told many that ‘you are a TV star, when people can watch you for free on TV who will buy a ticket to watch you on screen?’ I faced it a lot.”
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Sushant shot to fame with Ekta Kapoor’s popular show Pavitra Rishta, in which he featured with Ankita Lokhande. He quit the show to make his Bollywood debut with Kai Po Che in 2013 and went ahead to feature in a few critically as well as commercially acclaimed movies including Sonchiriya and MS Dhoni: The Untold Story.
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