Rahul Roy made his Bollywood entry with a splash with 1990s musical Aashiqui, which even after two decades is considered one of the best romantic Hindi films. While the film met success, the same can’t be said about Roy’s career in entirety. After the success of his early films Aashiqui (1990) and Junoon (1992), both from filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt’s camp, he met minuscule success. Roy was later relegated to supporting roles, which too almost dried up by 2001. Had it not been to his victory in the reality TV show Bigg Boss in 2007, Roy would had become a relic of the past, remembered only through his sole super-hit film Aashiqui.
When it comes to his personal life, Rahul Roy was in a brief relationship with the actress Manisha Koirala, and was later married to the model and make-up artist Rajlaxmi Khanvilkar for a substantial 14 years. In more recent times, he was seen dating model Sadhana Singh but their relationship is still in its nascent stages. While the relationship is ongoing, let’s take a closer look at the love life of Rahul Roy.
Rahul Roy – The Actor
Rahul Roy was born on 9th February 1968 in Kolkata to parents Deepak Roy and Indira Roy. Rahul Roy had his education from Solan, Himachal Pradesh and later from New Delhi, where his family settled later. When he was in New Delhi, he started receiving modelling offers, which he accepted and thus that marked his foray into the world of show business.
It is said that Rahul Roy’s mother, Indira Roy, worked as a columnist in a fashion magazine, and her work was admired by film-maker Mahesh Bhatt, who expressed his desire to meet her. It is when he met Indira Roy that she showed Mahesh Bhatt the photographs of her son, the model Rahul Roy. Bhatt was quite impressed by Roy’s good looks, and suggested Bollywood could be a viable option. It was later that Roy took heed to his suggestion and visited Mumbai, where he went straight to Mahesh Bhatt, who offered him a lead role in his film Aashiqui in the year 1990. The film went on to become a sensational hit, and Rahul Roy was soon a household name. He subsequently did several films with Mahesh Bhatt notable of which were Junoon (1992) and Phir Teri Kahani Yaad Aayee (1993).
After initial success, Roy witnessed a slack in his career owing to the string of flops at the box office. By 2000, he was mainly getting the roles of a supporting actor or was making cameos. In 2007, he participated in the season one of the reality TV show Bigg Boss where he won the reward prize. His victory brought him enough publicity, and since then he has been working on several films that are touted to be his comeback ventures.
Early Stardom, Early Affairs
Rahul Roy was first linked-up with none other than his mentor Mahesh Bhatt’s daughter Pooja Bhatt with whom he had worked in some films. But the two came on-record in 1993 to deny their affiliation with one another. It was soon after their announcement that Roy started seeing the pretty actress Manisha Koirala. Not much is known about their first meeting, and it is said that their relationship was a brief one that got shattered due to Roy’s work commitments. He had signed a slew of films after his successful first film, and was always on the move, thus unable to spend quality time with his girlfriend Manisha Koirala. Also it is said that he would be spending a lot of time with Mahesh Bhatt in lure of getting a leading role in whatever would be his next venture. Over a period of time, this created a rift between the Roy and Koirala, and the two soon separated after seeing each other for couple of years.
Rahul Roy’s first stable relationship was with the South Indian actress Suman Ranganathan, who made her foray into Bollywood with, Vikram Bhatt’s (Mahesh Bhatt’s brother) Fareb in 1996. Roy met Suman somewhere around 1995, and the two hit it off very soon and just a few months into their relationship, Suman moved in with Rahul at his place in Mumbai. Apparently, it is Rahul Roy, who convinced Suman to work in the film Fareb, since she was hesitant to give a nod to her role because it involved wearing swimsuits.
Roy and Suman stayed in a relationship for three years, and they were considered to be at the brink of tying the knot, when in 1998 there was news that they have called off their relationship. No one knows the real reason, but the possible cause for the discord could be Suman’s work commitment since she was more active in South Indian films than Bollywood. Since Rahul was based out of Mumbai, constant travelling would have been cumbersome, and she would have stayed away for months, which would have irked Rahul. Either way the couple had split, and Rahul was finally seeing someone else with whom he would stay espoused for more than a decade.
Marriage That Seemed To Be Forever
In 1998, Rahul Roy happened to meet Rajlaxmi Khanvilkar, who was a prominent model as well as a makeup artist. She was earlier married to the model Samir Soni but the marriage barely lasted six months. Roy and Rajlaxmi seem to have met through a common friend at a social event, and after initial phase of friendship started getting serious about their relationship. The couple went on to date one another for two years, and in the year 2000, they finally got married at a private wedding ceremony.
Roy and Rajlaxmi were in a marital bond for 14 years, and it seemed that their marriage was a success, when in July 2014 the couple announced their divorce as per mutual consent. Rahul later shared in an interview that he has split with Rajlaxmi on an amicable note, and the two do not harbour any hard feelings for one another.
“We have filed for divorce by mutual consent. Rajlaxmi will always remain an integral part of my life. She shares the same sentiment. Her family is still my family and that’s that. I’ll always be there for her.”
– Rahul Roy after his divorce with wife of 14 years Rajlaxmi Khanvilkar
It was also learnt that the reason for their divorce was Rajlaxmi’s intentions to settle down in Australia forever by starting her own chain of beauty salons in that country. Rahul Roy on the other hand wanted to stay in Mumbai, India, and was not keen on leaving the country. Apparently, the couple were already leading a life of separation for months after Rajlaxmi left for Australia and Roy stayed back in Mumbai. Roy even visited Australia on several occasions to see if he can accustom and accommodate himself to the new country but could not find a foothold causing him to return home in few days. Eventually the life of separation was too taxing for the couple, and they soon realised that divorce would be the best logical step to set each other free forever.
“Thankfully, it was not an ugly one. That chapter is now closed. We have been legally divorced for over a year. I have been blessed to be surrounded by good family and friends who helped me get over it.”
– Rahul Roy speaking of his divorce with Rajlaxmi Khanvilkar
Rajlaxmi now resides in Sydney, Australia, and Rahul Roy continues to live his usual life in Mumbai, India. Roy later shared that having no children made the entire process of breaking-up less stressful, and he shares a good rapport with Rajlaxmi’s family even after his divorce.
New Beginning?
Rahul Roy started seeing supermodel Sadhana Singh in early 2016, whom he happened to meet at a fashion event in Indore. He was smitten by Sadhana right at the moment he saw her, and he spared no time in sharing his feelings with the supermodel.
“It seemed like I have known her since many years. But we are taking it easy and I am treating the relationship with utmost respect. She is a remarkable girl with her head on her shoulders. I really feel blessed.”
– Rahul Roy about his relationship with model Sadhna Singh
In spite of sharing a good rapport with his new lady, he said that he wants to take things slow since he respects the fact that they need to know one another before taking their relationship to the altar. He added that he has no qualms about making an official announcement if he happens to tie the knot with Sadhna, and will do so when the moment arrives.
“We are still getting to know each other, so let’s see where this goes. But one thing’s for sure, this relationship is for keeps… My relationships have always been very serious… When we are ready, I will announce in the proudest manner to the whole world.”
– Rahul Roy about his plans to get married to Sadhna Singh
Well we will surely be all ears when the announcement comes out! In fact, going by their current rapport it does seem that Rahul and Sadhna may after all get into a matrimonial bond. We will surely update you when they do, and until then we wish the Aashiqui boy all the very best.
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