Eijaz Khan, last seen in Sony LIV's Adrishyam alongside Divyanka Tripathi Dahiya has been a well known face in the world of entertainment. From being a heart throb with KkavyaAnjali to getting his heartbroken and coping with the same, the Adrishyam fame, in an exclusive conversation with us bared his heart out and revealed it all.
From Kkavyanjali’s hearthrob to Jawan’s villain and now Adrishyam too, Eijaz, your career graph has been an interesting one. How do you look back at this journey now ?
Yes, it's been extremely interesting, especially because I took conscious breaks in between, dealing with life and a lot of other things that affected my career. It's been more than 20 years now. Initially, I was on a slope, and I had to keep moving and maintain the momentum. Then, when it came to films, I thought, Okay, let me stop, let me figure out what my niche is, what am I at, and let me try new things. So I tried films and other things. Then more television shows happened, which resonated with my life at that time, and I took those up. Some worked, some didn't. Now, after "City of Dreams," I figured out my strong points, my weak points, what works for me a little, and what doesn't work for me. t experimenting that much right now; I am capitalizing on the investment that I've made for so long. So, yeah, it's been very interesting.
Did you take conscious decisions to shape this journey the way it has been now, or did it all unfold spontaneously, on its own?
The only conscious decisions I took were sometimes stepping back from the rat race because I felt burnt out. I know it has affected me, and I know it has affected my career. I know where I would have been if I hadn't taken a break and had been working nonstop. But I needed that. I'm not the kind of person who would be happy just running. Having said that, it has affected a lot of my personal choices and my personal security, and that defines and influences my choices in life. Besides taking breaks, when I intended to have a family, I wanted to give my family security. So I took up "Adrishyam." It has worked well for everyone, and I'm very happy about it. Most of the other things that happened, like films, I went for auditions and chose roles where I felt I could add more, where I felt I could really do justice to the character and contribute a little extra. Those are the roles I chose.
I remember being an ardent fan of Kkavyanjali, at that point in time, without even the internet and social media fan base, you enjoyed stardom. How were things back then? Any fan moments you remember?
During "Kkavyanjali," I was too busy to even figure it out. I just remember my fans coming from the UK, or mostly outside of India, to the set to meet me. There were some weird fan moments also, which I don't want to get into.
Looking back at Kkavyanjali and all the fame that came along, tell us how did it change you, in both good and bad ways?
'Kkavyanjali' and everything happened when I was 30. I wasn't relatively new to the industry, but I was relatively new to the fame and adulation that came with it. It kind of gets to your head sometimes. I think, to a certain extent, it did get to my head. But I always feel that I'm God's child, and God really knows how to cut me down to size if I'm making a mistake. He did so in my personal life and my professional life. So God has always made sure that the hunger in my belly is always burning and not satiated, which drives me. What has changed? I'm a little more assured of my craft, and I know exactly what I can bring to the table. So I have a little more freedom to work around those things and have a little more freedom of choice regarding what to do with my time now.
Talking about the journey, both personal and professional, how do you look at failures—failures at work and failures in relationships too? How do you deal with them? How do you deal with heartbreak?
I don't know, man. At different stages in your life, there are different ways of coping with it. It also depends on what that thing or that person really meant to you, right? I think the only thing that saves you is keeping busy with work and aligning yourself with a better purpose. My heartbreak—I don't know how I'm dealing with it. You have good days, and you have bad days. But let me put it this way: I haven't lost faith in my love. I always know that if I truly love, my love will win. So I guess one has to be sensible enough to reconcile with the fact that sometimes you can love a person more than anything else you've ever loved in this world, more than anyone else, or more than everyone put together. And you have to accept that that person might not be in your life. Though it's very difficult to accept, it slowly trickles in.
What is in store for your fans next?
I have two releases this year. Hopefully, there will be "Dhoom Dhaam" and a Clean Slate film. I am playing very different and interesting characters in them. I am just in talks for two big and very fun films, so let's hope they work out. And "Adrishyam" is ongoing, so I'm very happy about that.
