Kajol’s co-star recalls had no money for food; lived without electricity as parents couldn’t pay bill: ‘Today I have 3 bungalows, luxury cars but…’

 

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Also Read: Actor Jisshu Sengupta’s journey from Bengal to Bollywood

Jisshu Sengupta never aspired to be an actor; in fact, his mother said, one actor in the family was enough. As an 18-year-old, Jisshu was playing cricket, he was a drummer, and played in the evenings to make pocket money. For him, life took a 360-degree turn when he bagged a role in the TV show Mahaprabhu. The show got him immense popularity and also improved the family’s living conditions. Looking back, Jisshu recalled how his audition for the show was terrible, yet he bagged that part. He shared, “I was 18 plus, and was almost in tears. I just wanted to leave. I couldn’t speak a line; they just clicked some profile pictures, and I returned. We didn’t have a telephone at home. After seven days, they called at my neighbor’s phone and asked me to come and collect the script.”

Recalling what hooked him into this profession was the money. He said, “I used to get Rs 250 per day, and I cannot tell you how huge that money was for me. But because it was a daily soap, I had to give up cricket and drumming; luckily, the show became a superhit and I became the first superstar on TV in Bengal. That time, I was a hero of four daily soaps; I would work for 72 hours continuously.”

 

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With Mahaprabhu, Jisshu became a sensation; he featured on magazine covers and was called the Hrithik Roshan of Kolkata. As for the financial conditions, Jisshu got himself a second-hand bike and replaced the broken fridge at home. “Slowly, things changed after Mahaprabhu. First, we got a phone. We had a fridge that was tied with a rope because the magnet was not working; since its stand was broken, it stood on bricks. We got a fridge, then we painted the house, renovated the bathroom to Western style,” Jisshu smiled as he recalled.

Just when Jisshu managed to bring some good days into the family, he lost his father in 2001. “It is one of the biggest regrets I have; I couldn’t do anything for my father. My mother passed away in 2008. Today, I have properties, 3 bungalows in Calcutta, I have Mercedes and Range Rovers standing in my garage, they couldn’t see anything. That is the only regret I have. I couldn’t make my father travel on a flight today; I only travel in business class. God has been really kind. If I die tomorrow, I would have no regrets, just this one,” Jisshu Sengupta shared as he got emotional.

He added, “I have seen them go through a lot, I have seen them crying. I saw my mom cry because there was no food at home. When I would come back home and ask for food, she would cry. Because of those times, I feel she was here now to see all of this.”

After 2001, Jisshu completely quit TV and started doing films. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a smooth ride; his initial films flopped. “I was labelled as an unlucky actor; no one gave me work. I still remember the biggest producers would look at me and say I am an over-exposed face. I was offered Sathi, but then the producer said this boy won’t work, he is over exposed on TV. That pushed me to do films. After I said no to TV shows, I was sitting at home for 6 months, I had no work. I started as the fourth lead because the money was going down. Any hero role I got was in C-grade films that released on Friday and were out on Saturday. For almost 8-10 years, I was labelled unlucky, and the biggest hit had me in a guest appearance,” Jisshu recalled.

 

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In 2008, Jisshu met Rituporno Ghosh, and that not just got him some of his best films, but also immense credibility as an actor. Today, Jisshu Sengupta is a celebrated name in Bengali cinema; he is looked upon as a fine actor, and recently, he starred opposite Kajol in the web series Trial Season 2. In Bollywood, Jisshu has starred in films like Barfi, Piku, Shakuntala Devi, and others.