9 Bollywood Stars Who Began Their Careers With Television
Do you ever just look at the glamorous and amazing lives of Bollywood celebrities, and wonder just how did they get so lucky? Well, I do. While some of these celebrities were indeed born with the proverbial silver spoon in their mouths, there are some who made it to the top on the basis of their talent and hard work. They began their innings in the world of acting on a much smaller screen, but even without the big production values of our modern-day upscale cinema, they managed to make their mark.
To give you your daily dose of inspiration, we have compiled a list of five such megastars whose career had very humble beginnings in the medium of television. You would be surprised to read number 5. Here you go:
1. Shah Rukh Khan
Say what you will about his latest cinematic offerings, Khan still remains the original Baadshah when it comes to Bollywood. And he makes no bones about it too! The “King of romance” who has won great accolades for his acting such as the Padma Shri, originally began his career on a TV series known as Fauji, in 1989. He followed it up with roles in other TV series such as Wagle Ki Duniya, and another miniseries, Idiot.
But evidently, he was destined for bigger things. He broke into the Bollywood landscape, with his debut, Deewana, in 1992, which even won him the Filmfare Best Male Debut Award. He went on to prove his mettle as an actor by portraying negative roles in movies such as Darr, and Baazigar. Well, the rest is history.
2. Vidya Balan
Before she was melting our hearts with her portrayal of the homemaker-next-door or was raising the temperatures with her fierce avatar in Dirty Picture, this south Indian beauty was making her way to the tinsel town by making us laugh.
That’s right before she made her debut in Parineeta, Vidya was seen on the small screen, playing the role a bespectacled teenager, Radhika, in the much-beloved comedy, Hum Paanch, in 1995. She dropped out of the project when it became evident that it was impacting her education, and it took her a while to make it to the screen, but she did, and she hasn’t looked back ever since.
3. Ayushmann Khurrana
The genial boy-next-door, who surprised everyone with his stellar performance in the breakout hit of the year, Andhadhun, had that success in making for quite a while. A theatre enthusiast from the city of Chandigarh, Khurrana’s first tryst with the camera came in 2001, when he auditioned for the reality show, Pop Stars, on Channel V. However, it wasn’t until 2004, that he became a familiar face on TV after he became the winner on Roadies 2, at the young age of 20. Ayushmann, then went on to host a number of television shows such as MTV’s Rock On and India’s Got Talent. He finally made his way to the big screen and the audience’s hearts with his debut, Vicky Donor, in 2012.
4. Madhavan
Madhavan or Ranganathan Madhavan, is one of the very few actors who can boast of having a pan Indian appeal after having acted in films made in 7 different Indian languages. His acting career began with the television series, Banegi Apni Baat, on Zee TV. He further gained popularity with his role as Shekhar, in the TV series, Saayaand his portrayal of a ship captain in the series, Sea Hawks in the late 1990s. He soon made his big screen debut in the Kannada film, Shanti Shanti Shanti, which didn’t do so well.
Finally, he gained recognition when the acclaimed director, Mani Ratnam, cast him in his movie, Alaipayuthey, in 2000 and thus, he began his journey to stardom. His break in Bollywood came soon after this when he bagged his first lead role in a Hindi movie, Rehna Hai Tere Dil Main, the following year.
5. Irfann Khan
Looking at his immense body of work, both in Bollywood and Hollywood, it becomes quite easy to overlook the fact that Irrfan’s success took a long time finding its way home. But this incredible actor had been trying to break into the acting scene since 1984, when he took admission in NSD (National School Of Drama), in Delhi. A couple of years later, he shifted his base to Mumbai when he finally got the chance to act on the small screen. He appeared in a number of television series such as Chandrakanta, Chanakya, Bharat Ek Khoj, Banegi Apni Baat, during the 90s. He also bagged a cameo in Mira Nair’s Salaam Bombay (1988), but the part was edited out.
It wasn’t until his breakthrough role in Vishal Bharadwaj’s Shakespearean adaptation Maqbool, that he was noticed on the big screen. Since then both his body of work and his fame has grown in leaps and bounds and deservedly so!
6. Yami Gautam
Yami Gautam’s father Mukesh Gautam is a Punjabi actor and she followed his footsteps. She came to Mumbai to pursue a career in acting and got her big break when she was cast in Chaand Ke Paar Chalo. She had acted in a few other television serials before she made it to Bollywood like Yeh Pyar Na Hoga Kam.
7. Hina Khan
Hina Khan’s performance as Akshara in Yeh Rishta Kya Kehelata Hain is always going to be memorable for the small screen viewers. She then rose to a higher level of popularity when she participated in the popular television show Big Boss. And now, Hina is all set to make it to Bollywood and has quite a number of movies that are said to be releasing in 2020. We wish the new-age Komolika all the best!
8. Mandira Bedi
Who doesn’t know Mandira Bedi? If you’re a 90s kid you’d definitely know her from various TV shows including cricket shows, fashion shows, and movies. The actress and fashion designer started her career with TV serial Shanti which aired in Doordarshan (1994). And this serial was the first every daily television serial to air in India!
9. Sushant Singh Rajput
Sushant, the actor who brought MS Dhoni’s life to the big screen had very humble beginnings just like the character he portrayed in the blockbuster movie. Sushant entered the field of acting through the TV serial Kis Desh Mein Hai Meraa Dil and not even as the lead hero. He rose to popularity after acting in Pavitra Rishta alongside Ankita Lokhande, who was his girlfriend for years. People not only loved him on their television screens but were heart eying on his relationship stories as well. He got his big break into Bollywood when he acted in the movie Kai Po Che in 2013.
While we certainly are jealous of the lives that these celebs lead, we don’t envy them for the years of hard work, do we? Nevertheless, this only goes to prove that hard work does bear fruits. Do you have any more additions to make to this list? Let us know in the comments.
