Hi everyone,

One more year comes to an end and one more year stands tall in front of us. 2012 is what we will be part of in a few days from now. Numerologists must have given predictions; astrologers must have warned about the good/bad times to come. I say just one thing.  Lets take 2012 head on and write our own destiny.

I am sure a lot of resolutions must have been made by now. Well, I have not made any. In fact I have never made any New Year resolution. Somehow, could never wait for 31^st of every year to make a resolution.  But I hope that I continue to live up to your expectations and never let you down.

I am pretty happy the way 2011 summed up. Some failures, some successes. Some excitements, some disappointments. All these elements make life exciting in totality. But one thing that remained constant throughout the year was POSITIVITY. I hope the reservoirs of this force called POSITIVITY never dry up. I survive on it! I do not know what 2012 has in store for me. All I hope is that around the same time next year when I sit down to write to you and reflect back on 2012, I have the same smile on my face and satisfaction within that I did what I wanted to do.

I am off to a road trip with Manjiri to the interiors of Rajasthan. Will be coming back to Mumbai around 5^th Jan. But before I leave I wanted to thank all of you for being so good to me, like always. I may sound modest when I thank you but I genuinely feel fortunate to get your love and affection. I am aware of all the small/big things all of you do for me. Thanks for everything. Let me also use this opportunity to wish all of you a beautiful year ahead. I hope that each one of you believes in yourself and work towards realizing your dreams.  End results of 2012 rest in our hands. Is it not?

Keep smiling always.

LOTS OF LOVE AND BEST WISHES AS ALWAYS

Rajeev Khandelwal

Tags: Actor, Manjari, New year, Rajasthan, Rajeev Khandelwal

‘What can I do? ‘‘I can’t bring any difference alone’. ‘It is impossible!’ ‘Things will never change’. ‘I support them but I can’t join them’.  ‘I am too young’. ‘I can’t do anything sitting here in a small town’. ‘I don’t have time’. ‘They are doing it for publicity’.  ‘Nothing will happen because of the poverty in this country’. ‘It will die down soon’…..and innumerable other ways to ignore and influence our mind. Have you ever experienced such thoughts? I have, sadly.

We can ignore our contribution but cannot ignore certain realities we are living in.  We all our frustrated from deep within but we have learnt to let that frustration reside deep inside only. ‘The sad state of affairs’ is in our face but we choose to look away.  At times I wonder – are we genuinely patriotic or do we just ‘like’ the idea of being patriotic. Do we all sham on republic days/independence days or do we genuinely love our country?

WE are being ruled (not governed) by some elected people who also happen to be our fellow countrymen. Unfortunately, these elected people do everything but ‘behave’ like fellow countrymen. Look at the irony of ironies – WE elect them to lead us and for ‘our’ betterment. WE give them their position and then overnight WE only start serving them. Not because they are entitled to but because WE are so used to being slaves that WE cant imagine living otherwise. As far as they are concerned, they also become foreigners overnight. Our country becomes a foreign land for them which they have to plunder and loot. Our weakness becomes their strength. WE give them swords and offer our necks – “please be kind enough to behead us.  Forget complaining, you won’t hear a whimper of protest”. ‘WE’ -  a term for togetherness but WE took it to another level. WE came together for all these meek submissions but never for the show of strength.

Those who are educated blame the establishment, those who are not educated blame themselves. Those who are financially well off think it is not their job to worry about it.  Those who are financially weak think I rather invest my energy and time in earning my survival. Everybody is either blaming or waiting. Waiting for the CHANGE which will SOMEDAY (not today) hopefully come on its own or someone will engineer it. But it is always ‘someone else’ and seldom ‘I’ who will bring the change.

Having expressed all this I also wish to add that not all is lost. There could be individuals who can prove my feelings dumbfounded. There could be people who are already saying ‘ I will bring the change’.  There could be many like me who woke up finally and called up the Prime Minister’s Office to register my protest.  There could be people waiting for us to strengthen their efforts. The least we can do is add strength and not add weakness. We all can contribute in some way or the other and we don’t need anyone to tell us how.  And it has to be NOW because tomorrow never comes. Let’s rise and make our lives better because WE deserve it.

Let’s not press for change, lets press for betterment.

Rajeev

Tags: 15th August, country, government, Independence Day, India, moment of truth, patriotic, prime minister, Rajeev Khandelwal, republic day

And once again I surface after a long absence. Trust me, it is not because of anything in particular. It’s everything together – work, personal life, traveling etc. A lot has happened in my life since we last interacted and I need to update you on all fronts.

First things first…I am a married man now. Marriage happened so suddenly that I did not get enough time to deal with it like a separate identity. It seemed as if it was scheduled in my life. I got married at Khimsar fort near Jodhpur on Feb 7^th. 2011. It was a beautiful experience and memories of this day will bring a smile on Manjiri’s face and mine for sure.  Everything went just as we had dreamt of. Only family and close friends were present during the three-day affair. Everything around us contributed in making our wedding special and beautiful. The weather was perfect (since we did not follow any janam kundli etc, the date was chosen by us. The perfect setting of cold weather in desert was just what we had imagined. The venue enhanced the mood and the village around it added to the magic. Some of the pictures were on the net so I am presuming that, those interested, have had a glimpse of my marriage.

Manjiri and I are living in the same house (where I used to live prior to my marriage) presently but we should be moving in to our new house by the year -end. Life is still the same except that my house is no more my house. It is more of her house now. Just getting used to being roughed up on things as trivial as wearing the same jeans for days without washing or not paying attention to some inane gossip. But you know what – all this is a small payment you make for getting someone you can go to in any mood/emotion, state without the fear of rejection.

Anyway, lets shift attention to the work front. SHAITAN releases on 10^th June. You will have to watch the film to see my portrayal of Arvind Mathur(my character name in the film).  It was a fantastic experience of working with Bejoy Nambiar. I think he is a very talented director who will go places. Apparently, the film has shaped up really well.

After SHAITAN it will be SOUNDTRACK, which too I am told has shaped up well. Neerav Ghosh is the director of the film. He is going to make a mark very soon with his debut film. It is slated for release on the 12^th of August.

Somewhere around the same time or may be a few weeks earlier/later you will also have Sach Ka Saamna season 2. I have started shooting for it already.You may get to see two more films of mine this year. I will talk about them once the release dates are announced. I will be travelling all over Europe in the next two months for work.

I hope all of you are doing well and leading your lives with a lot of positivity. I shall be waiting to read /hear your reviews of all the projects of mine you choose to see.

Since, the wait has been long I want to compensate it by sharing a few pictures from my personal collection.

Love and best wishes as always…

Rajeev

Click on the image to get enlarged view

Click image to get enlarged view

Click image to get enlarged view

Tags: Bejoy Nambiar, Manjari, marriage, Neerav Ghosh, Rajeev Khandelwal, Sach Ka Saamna 2, Shaitan, Soundtrack

Hi everyone,

So one more year from our life comes to an end. And one more year awaits our entry. While all this goes on one thing chugs on! The ever beautiful life. At its own speed, stopping for nothing, yet gathering moss in the form of experiences. Experiences which enrich our life and make it beautiful.

I know from your point of view it may not have been a great year for me. No films released and i have been missing from your radar too. But I am hoping i make up for it in 2011. I have a feeling that you will start seeing me in action from march end onwards.

But for me 2010 has been very beautiful. I got engaged(to the woman i love), shot for four different films(the kind of characters i wanted to play) and bought a new house(the kind of house i had dreamt) and a new car(the kind of car i wanted for my camping etc). So, everything was just perfect.

I also know, you know that i am getting married to Manjiri in feb Well, 7th is the date and i am getting married at a place close to Jodhpur. I am very happy that one more thing is happening just the way i had dreamt of it. I have always had this visual of my pheras with a historical backdrop. Finally, the place i have picked up for my wedding is a 15th century fort and exactly like the visual i had in my mind. What more can i ask for?  The place is called Khimsar fort. And yes, my wedding will be attended by very very close friends and family.

A lot is happening on the work front. I am shooting till 2nd feb and will get free just in time for my marriage. I have to be back in mumbai by 15th feb to resume work. Will take out some time in march to go out on a holiday with Manjiri.

With all this i am still chasing my dreams. Big and small alike.  And i hope that you too chase your dreams and make them happen in real.  I have learnt from my experience that dreaming is the first step towards achieving. The second and only step after it is chasing it. And dreams do not have a great stamina. They give up if you chase with all your might. I hope when we exchange notes at the end of 2011 there are many of you to share their success stories.

Wishing you all a great year ahead.

Love
Rajeev

Tags: Jodhpur, Manjari, marriage, Rajeev Khandelwal

Hi everyone,

One more 16th oct, one more day to feel indebted to you and one more day when the resolve to ‘never let you down’ gets stronger.

This year I consciously chose not to announce a number. I know it will disappoint a lot of you but this year I want to keep it a very low profile affair. I know that all of you put in so much effort to reach out to me but this year please allow me to break my practice of attending to calls on my birthday. Actually I will not be in a position to so decided to take a break. However, this does not mean that I will not do it in future. Nothing has changed and nothing will ever change.

This year has been the most beautiful year of my life - fraught with uncertainties, delays etc on work front. I know it may sound ironical but the truth is that the best years of your life are the years when you hold on to your self-belief and surge ahead fighting all the odds. And you realize it, only when you go ahead and look back. I call it a beautiful year also because I got engaged to Manjiri this year J

Anyway, thanks for all the love and affection which has been constantly trickling in, in the form of cards, gifts, mails, sms’s etc since the last ten days or so.  All I can say is that I feel humbled. I, like every year, am accepting everything with a hope that I reciprocate this love in many ways in years to come. Thanks for making me feel so special yet again.

I love you all.

Rajeev Khandelwal

Tags: Birthday, Rajeev Khandelwal

Hi friends,

To begin with let me thank all of you for the friendship day messages. As always, i tried replying to as many but i am sure i did not reply to each one of you. So here goes my message to all my friends - ‘Long live friendship. The bonds that have been forged amongst all of us should be unbreakable and unshakeable, come what may.’

Since friendship was the flavour last week let me share with you what friendship means to me. I think a true friend gives you the confidence that there is someone to fall back on, if need be. A true friend is an outlet where you can throw up your deepest/darkest secrets, weaknesses, frustrations etc without the fear of the other person being judgmental. I am fortunate to have a few such friends from my school days, college days and my mumbai days.

Anyway, to update you i just came back from Bangkok after finishing the final schedule of ‘Will you marry me’. The film has shaped up much better then the expectations (The producer Mr Krishan Chaudhary must be a relieved man as both his films have finished) It was fun working with the team and especially shooting the songs. The choreographer Shabina Khan and her team did a brilliant job. I think it was a great unit with Aaditya at the helm. All the actors were amazing people and that is why we could pull off some really strenuous days. Shreyas is an amazing actor and an adorable person and Muzammil is one guy who can make women go weak on there knees. Mughda is a fun girl and very hard working while Tripta is a sweetheart. Celina is a very hassle free girl and great to bond with. Since i and Celina had spent a few years together as kids in Ahmedabad so it was fun to work with her after all these years. So much to learn from actors like Manoj Joshi and Paresh Rawal. Since Aadi is a fun loving person, their were times when we would shoot till late, party and then report very early on the sets. Since this one is my first ‘typically commercial’ film so be prepared for a surprise The edit of Joker has begun. Vikram is at it and i am sure he will come out with a great product. Will keep you updated about the release etc. As of now there are no specific dates to look forward to, in my context.

As i may have about a month free after 15th august, i am toying with the idea of going for my routine camping trips to Leh. This year i am very excited because i will be going in my new car(scorpio 4×4) which has been specially customized for camping by Mahindra and Mahindra itself. The car should be ready in ten days and i shall surely share the pics with you. It is going to be one of its kind in the country. I know i am already showing off but cant help it as i am too excited. I should be missing from all the networks from mostly 25th august till 15th september. Anybody interested?

As of now, i am just chilling and working on my new look for the film to start in october. By the way all those who had read about Tainaat let me tell you that it is not happening. The film got delayed by a month and i could not allot any fresh dates since i had already committed my october to some other producer. The producers are hoping that they will shoot the film sometime early next year.

‘Challenges are the the ingredients without which any achievement would be insipid’ - just a thought! And on this note i take your leave till we meet next time.

Till then, keep smiling.

Love
Rajeev

Tags: Celina, friendship day, Joker, Mughda, Rajeev Khandelwal, Shabina Khan, Shreyas

Hi,

I do not know how to start this mail. I have been reading all the mails, posts and comments here and there. I feel guilty and sad for having kept you all waiting but it was not without a reason. I am sure none of you will ever harbor lame thoughts like `he has changed’ etc, for I will never have a reason to. And I know I am not a frivolous man to let seasonal changes reflect in my attitude.

I have been busy and have been traveling a lot in the last three months but that has not been the reason for my not writing to you guys. A lot of uncertainties have been shrouding my projects and any clarity doesn’t look in the vicinity. I can deal with it as I am used to it but it bothers me when you start getting affected by it. I have seen many of you counting days for the release of my films and then getting disappointed on knowing that it got delayed. So, it gets difficult to answer to your queries at times and giving you false hopes is not my style. Hence, I decided to stay away for a while but had to return, as it was getting increasingly difficult for me to ignore your requests.

To update you about what is happening in my life let me start with PGKS. It looks that the film will take some more time and the answer to WHY lies with UTV. `Joker’ is almost complete – just 7 to 9 days of shoot is pending. It is looking very promising but I shall give my final opinion once I see the final cut of the film. All I can say at this stage is that we have a good looking, feel good, original film on hand. Kudos to Vikram and his team for rising above the script and making the film possible despite so many challenges. `Will you marry me’ is 50% done and the rest will be finished in the month of July. The production house as when the time is right will announce the release of all these films. I have two more interesting films lined up between September and January. Will discuss them once the time comes.  I know you are understandingly getting impatient to see me on screen but my job gets over once the shooting and dubbing of the film is done. The truth is I too am missing your feedback about my performances.

On my personal front I am sure all of you know that I got engaged in the month of May.  Thanks for all your congratulatory messages, mails posts etc. I tried thanking each one of you personally but I am sure I must have missed out on many. The engagement ceremony was like a beautiful dream and the memories of it are permanently ensconced in my treasure box. All I can say is that Manjiri has made my life even more beautiful. Marriage happens early next year.

Before I wrap this one, let me tell you that I am as always amazed by your capacity to love someone. Your patience, persistence and concern never seem to cease. I an indebted to you forever and I know I can reciprocate a fraction of it it only by living up to your expectations. And my efforts to achieve that will also never cease.

Lots of love and best wishes

Rajeev

Tags: Joker, Manjari, Peter gaya kaam se, Rajeev Khandelwal, Will You Marry me

Hi,

They say it is the ‘love season’. I say it is one more ‘reason’. Think of it and you will realise that throughout the year it is love that binds us together. Your love for each other, your love for me, my love for you. So, all that i missed was being with you since love  is a permanent fixture in our relationship. Is it not?

I did not write to all of you because of various reasons. Firstly, i was too caught up with the uncertainties shrouding my next film. Secondly, i had to do a lot of prep work for the film. And finally because i was out for almost a month i did not go on the net because i was too occupied with the shoot. The status of Joker as of today is - 50% complete and the rest to be finished by april in mumbai and some foreign location. We shot this 50% in Ooty by the way. The shoot went off very well and i am already in love with a five year old Poo in my film:-) The kid playing my son is a terrific actor and you cant help but just adore him. Alphonse Roy’s cinematography as always is brilliant and Vikram Tuli’s direction is something to look out for. Prachi is looking stunning in the film and i have been told that we look good together - all thanks to her. The songs are very beautiful. Can’t wait to finish this one.

I was going through all your posts and realised how magnanimous you all are. Except a few distatsteful comments(well there are all kinds of people in the world and the sooner we accept it the better it will be) i think all of you deserve a big ‘thank you’ from my side for being so patient. I read the poems, felt the love and got the blessings. More then that what touches me each time i read all the posts is that i find you like one large family. Love the way you care for each other.

I am at present in Mumbai and will be travelling to a few cities and to Bangkok this month. All for work but no film shoot. Joker’s shoot will happen in ‘in-between’ days. So it will be a super busy month - no i am not hinting at any disappearing act Will try to reply to your mails and will also try to keep you all abreast with all the latest happening in my life. Till then you take care.

Lots of love
Rajeev

Hi friends,

The giving time of the year is here again. Since i receive so much love and affection from all of you, it is time for me to reciprocate it. And the only way i can ‘give’ is by expressing my thoughts in words.

I am just an actor by profession. My job is to act and entertain my audience. Just like a doctor’s job is to cure the disease, an engineer’s job is to design, build etc, a politician’s job is to run the country/state/city/constituency and so on so forth. Also, we are in our respective professions because that is what we are best at to earn our bread. So no question of one being superior to another. Despite this, when i look at my life, i feel i am the privileged one. I have always found people so benign towards me wherever i go or meet or interact. I do not think i have anything special to deserve such generosity from people so I often ask myself - why are you all so kind to me? And i could never get the answer. I have tried attributing it to the characters i have played but then i realize even when i am not playing any character, your love does not start ebbing away. I guess it is your kindness, my good fortune or something. Whatever it is, one thing is for sure - i am not complaining! So with my reasoning on mute mode, I am accumulating this debt which will need many lifetimes to pay off. However, my quest would be to pay off as much as i can within this lifespan. On this beautiful day, let me thank you for your unconditional love and affection all these years.

A quick update of what i have been doing off late. I spent some quality time with my mom and dad in jaipur. Went to a small but beautiful city called Alwar near jaipur to celebrate my aunts(mom’s sister) 50th wedding anniversary. I moved around the city on a bike and did i have fun!!!! Then i was in Goa for a while to shoot the music video of PGKS. In mumbai presently and going out with a few friends for camping in the outskirts of Mumbai on the 30th Dec to bring in the new year. Then I leave in the month of  jan to shoot a film in New Zealand if all goes well(details will be provided later). I should be back in time to start with Chenab by feb end(if the project takes off on time).

And by the way, i do read the posts on the blog. I was a bit disappointed by all the funny things happening here. Though i would like to refrain from commenting but still let me make a small request to all -   please ensure that only love spreads here.

So, merry Christmas to all of you and the new year is just a week away. Lets put in our hard work to make sure that the first year of the second decade of this century becomes pleasantly memorable for us. Lets spread love and lets make this world a better place to live in and a better legacy to pass on to the future inheritors.

Lots of love
Rajeev

Tags: Actor, Chenab Gandhi, PGKS, Rajeev Khandelwal

Hi friends,

Here i am back again! I hate being absent for such a long time but could not help it since there was a lot happening on my work front. To begin with, Return Gift got delayed by 20 days and finally when we were all set to leave for Chandigarh, the director Saurabh Narang was detected with stomach cancer(close to advanced stage). It was so unfortunate that it took us a few days to come to terms with it. Saurabh is a brilliant guy and ‘Return Gift’ is his dream film on which he has been working for close to three years now. When everything fell in place for him, his health failed him. I and all of us associated with the film are just hoping that he gets well soon. As far as RG is concerned, it will wait for Saurabh’s return and we all intend to support him in every possible manner.

Also, there was this news of me not being part of Chenab Gandhi. Although this news was bogus, i felt all of you were really affected. I would be lying if i say that i hate it. I love the fact that you care about me and want to see me happy all the time. But i also hate to see all of you ruffled by such news. The field i am in is a place where anything happens, and anything can happen. This is surely not a place for chicken hearts. One has to just believe in himself and keep going ahead. Failures, success will all be a part of this journey. I come with my destiny and nobody can take it away from me. So, whether i am a part of any project or not is just another contribution to my destiny. That will never be the end of road for me as long as i am alive. The road will end only when i want it to end. So the moral of the story is - try not getting affected with all that you read or hear!!!!

Winters is setting in and i envy all those those who are experiencing it. Here in Mumbai the whether is more or less the same through out the year except monsoons. Isn’t it fun to sit in the sun and have ‘moongphali’ and gunna(sugarcane) in this whether. Chiki, gajak, revdi….oooh, how i love winters! If you haven’t experienced it then please go and do it.

I hope all of you are doing good. I am in Mumbai as of now and plan to go on a long holiday up in the north. For a change this time it won’t be Leh Wish all of you a happy Eid in advance. And trust me this time you will not have to wait till Christmas to hear from me. Let me know if i could contribute in anyway in anyone’s life.

Till we meet again - be good, be positive and live life to the fullest!

Love and best wishes
Rajeev

P:S: Tech Team asked me to pass on this information. You all have a creations Gallery attached to the blog now as requested by few, to post your creations and share with me. Here’s the link to the same. You can see it at the top right hand corner of the blog.

http://blog.rajeev-khandelwal.net/?page_id=53

Thanks.

Tags: Chenab Gandhi, Rajeev Khandelwal, Return Gift