TWENTY YEARS ON!

As one of the most promising faces of the 1990s makes a comeback, we trace his disappearance and dramatic return

On a recent chat show, Sonam Kapoor randomly compared her fellow guest, Kenny Sebastian, to Chandrachur Singh. For those who grew up in the 1990s, this was a major blast from the past. They remember everything about the dreamy-eyed Maachis (1996) actor. His role as a disillusioned young man, in Gulzar’s fiercelypolitical movie set in the violent and volatile Punjab of the 1980s, not only won him the best debut

Filmfare award but also made him and his costar Jimmy Sheirgill, another newbie, overnight teen sensations. The same year, Singh acted in the romantic comedy Tere Mere

Sapne with yet another debutant actor, Arshad Warsi. He then did Dil Kya Kare (1999), Daag: The Fire (1999), Silsila Hai Pyar Ka (1999), and of course Kya Kehna (2000) and Josh (2000) where he played

Aishwarya Rai’s lover, crooning Mere Khayalon Ki Mallika.

But then after a spate of very forgettable movies, he almost vanished. We only saw him in cameos, such as the one in the 2012 Mira Nair film, The Reluctant Fundamentalist.

Cut to 2020 and the actor is once again the talk of the town. This time with yet another debut – on the OTT platform. His recently-released Disney+hotstar web series

“I HAD AN ACCIDENT WHILE JET

SKIING IN GOA... I COULDN’T SHOOT AT A STRETCH. ALSO, DUE TO THE MEDICATION, MY WEIGHT

WOULD FLUCTUATE.”

Aarya, where Singh plays Tej Sareen, a doting father and a loving husband with a murky past, is earning rave reviews.

GOING IN-SEN

“I think the time was right and everything fell in place beautifully. I always liked the kind of films Ram (Madhvani) did and when he approached me I was keen on doing it. There were auditions of course,” says Singh casually when we catch him for a quick chat over phone. But he wasn’t aware that he was being cast opposite Sushmita Sen.

“I will tell you something interesting. Coming to Mumbai very reluctantly joined social media and is deeply protective of his personal space.

“I had personal responsibilities and since the roles I was getting weren’t substantial enough, I decided give it a break and focus on my family,” he says, unwilling to elaborate.

A bit of prodding reveals that he has been a single parent and raising his son has been full-time engagement for the past few years. “Also, there was a slew of interesting films I had signed, which didn’t materialise… some got shelved after being shot, others didn’t even go to the sets,” reveals Singh.

“I had personal responsibilities, and since the roles I was getting weren’t substantial enough, I decided give it a break and focus on my family”