The careers of most people who make it big in life start with humble beginnings. Ayushmann Khurrana was a participant and the winner of the reality show ‘MTV Roadies’ Season 2. Before that, he had participated in Channel V’s singing reality show ‘Popstars’ and had later auditioned for ‘Zee Cinestar Ki Khoj’ as well. Khurrana’s journey as a VJ is well known to most people who have followed his work but not much has been documented about his brief stint as an actor on television.
The actor was a part of the TV show ‘Kayamath’ which was produced by Ekta Kapoor’s Balaji Telefilms and was aired from 2007-09. This was Ayushmann’s first assignment as an actor; this marked his debut in fiction television. Interestingly, he did was not playing the lead role but a small role, which another actor replaced him in later. In the show, the actor portrayed the character of Saket Shergill who was the brother of Neev, the main protagonist played by Jay Bhanushali. He was later replaced by actor Alok Narula. In an old interview, Ayushmann had candidly said that his first acting (referring to this role) job involved him staring at the camera without saying much. He was a part of the show for a short period of time and was replaced by Alok Narula who played this character after he left the show.
Ayushmann did play one of the lead roles in ‘Ek Thi Rajkumari, the only other fiction show he was part of. On television, he carved a niche for himself as an anchor/VJ and went on to host several popular shows like ‘India’s Got Talent’, ‘Music Ka Maha Muqqabla’, ‘Just Dance’, among others before Bollywood beckoned with ‘Vicky Donor’ (2012).
‘Kayamath’ was the only project which Ayushmann worked with Balaji Telefilms on. And, in his seven-year long film career, this is the first time he is working with the company. With ‘Dream Girl’, life has come full circle for him as Ekta Kapoor who gave him his first break as an actor, albeit in a small role, is the producer of his new film where he plays the main protagonist.
