By popular demand, producer Ekta Kapoor has shared the very first scene actor Sushant Singh Rajput shot for his first TV show - and it is satisfyingly epic, in true blue cheesy TV style. Sushant, who died on June 14 at the age of 34, was cast as the second lead on 2008 soap Kis Desh Mein Hain Meraa Dil. "We knew he was meant for greater things and he went and did just that," Ekta Kapoor wrote in her post - Sushant was then cast as the lead in hit show Pavitra Rishta after which he made his Bollywood debut in 2013 film Kai Po Che!
The scene that Ekta Kapoor shared does appear to indicate that she did have an inkling that stardom was just a short while away for Sushant Singh Rajput because he gets a full-on filmy hero's reveal - framed on top of a car, which itself is perched dizzyingly on a cliff edge; the scene then cuts to a football game where Sushant scores the winning goal in the sort of dramatic manner that Ekta Kapoor soaps excel in.
"Lots of people were asking me about Sushant's first scene... this was the first scene we shot with him.
This was his 1st scene on Television which went on-air in a show called 'Kis Des Mein Hai Mera Dil'... Lots of love, peace and prayers for this beautiful, beautiful piece of light and shining soul," Ekta Kapoor captioned her post.
Sushant Singh Rajput then graduated to his star-making role on Pavitra Rishta opposite actress Ankita Lokhande - but it wasn't easy. Days before he died, Ekta Kapoor revealed on Instagram that she held out against the studio which didn't think Sushant was a good fit for the role. "Wanted to cast a boy as lead who was doing second lead on our other show. The creative at Zee was adamant he didn't look the part. We convinced them his smile would win a million hearts and it did," she wrote. "And I'm forever grateful to you ma'am," Sushant wrote back.
Just over a week later, Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead at home in Mumbai. Police said he died by suicide and questioned several members of the film fraternity, among them actress Rhea Chakraborty who was dating Sushant. Sushant's family filed a separate police case against Rhea accusing her of cheating the actor financially and driving him to suicide. The case, filed in Bihar, has now been handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation or CBI. Rhea has also been questioned the Enforcement Directorate, which investigates financial crime.
Sushant Singh Rajput received both critical and commercial acclaim for his work in films such as Chhichhore, MS Dhoni: The Untold Story, Kedarnath and Detective Byomkesh Bakshy! His last film, Dil Bechara, released online after his death.
