Gurmeet Choudhary survived on Rs 36 a day, now owns Rs 16 cr home and dream farmhouse

A dream that brought him to Mumbai at 19

Speaking to Bharti TV, Gurmeet Choudhary, who hails from Bihar, opened up about his decision to pursue acting. “I came to Mumbai in 2003 soon after giving my board exams for 12th. I didn’t even wait for my results to come. After coming to Mumbai, I did an acting course. I started taking up small odd roles in TV shows, like the friend of the main hero, and my good looks helped. I did unnamed characters,” he said.

One phone call, however, gave him the push he needed to take his dream seriously.

The Yash Chopra call that changed Gurmeet Choudhary’s path

Speaking to ABP News, Gurmeet recalled how he somehow managed to get filmmaker Yash Chopra’s phone number and decided to call him. “During this time, I somehow managed to gain the number of producer Yash Chopra. When I called him, he was sweet enough to answer my call and even called me to meet him. I was just 19 then. He suggested me to join TV. He gave me an example of Shah Rukh Khan who started with TV,” he said.

The advice motivated Gurmeet to keep working and accept every opportunity that came his way, no matter how small.

Surviving Mumbai on Rs 36 a day

The road to success, however, was far from easy. Gurmeet Choudhary came to Mumbai with limited financial support and had to rely on friends to survive. “When I came to Mumbai, I didn’t have a lot of money. My dad supported me but didn’t have so much money and to survive in Mumbai was very difficult. Some of my friends helped me a lot financially. I had to survive on just Rs 36 a day. I took multiple buses to go to different production houses with my portfolio. I would grab breakfast from home, but for lunch I would just eat biscuits. It was this hard work that helped me attract offers,” he recalled.

The actor continued taking up whatever work came his way until his biggest opportunity arrived.

How Gurmeet Choudhary landed the role of Ram

Gurmeet was working on a Tamil show, where Debina Bonnerjee played the female lead and he played the antagonist, when fate once again intervened. “I was doing a show in Tamil where Debina was the heroine and I was the villain. The hero of the show had a meeting with Ramanand Sagar’s son Anand Sagar. He was showing him a showreel when Ramanand Sagar expressed his desire to meet me. Venkatesh quickly shared my number, they called me, took my look test and I was selected. After Ramayan, I never had to look back,” he said.

The role of Ram transformed Gurmeet Choudhary into a household name. However, his journey with Debina had begun much before they appeared together as Ram and Sita.

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Gurmeet and Debina were secretly married before Ramayan

While many viewers believe Gurmeet and Debina met on the sets of Ramayan, the couple had actually been married before the show began. Speaking to Bharti TV, Gurmeet revealed, “Debina and I had tied a knot even before Ramayan. When I auditioned for Ram, I motivated Debina to audition for Sita and she got selected. People think we met on set, but that wasn’t the case. We were both secretly married. Our parents were not aware.”

He also recalled how Debina stood by him during his struggling years.

“Debina was a huge star in South. She had money, she was supporting me when I met her parents. I just had a bike. The best thing was that even her parents supported me. If you will see our wedding photo, we look like two kids of age 19. We had proper wedding with havan,” he said.

When playing Ram became a career obstacle

While Ramayan brought Gurmeet Choudhary immense popularity, it also left him struggling to find work. “After a point, people had to remind me that I was acting. I was merged into it. I lived it for 1.5 years. I could feel a special energy while playing the role of Ram. I wouldn’t be able to do it if it wasn’t for that divine energy,” he said.

The actor revealed that he remained without a job for around a year and a half after Ramayan.

“Between Ramayan and Geet, I didn’t have any job offer for about 1.5 years. I was a victim of industry typecast after Ramayan attained popularity. People suggested I join politics. After Ram and Sita, only mythological offers came my way. It was very difficult to land Geet and then Punar Vivah,” he recalled.

Geet – Hui Sabse Parayi eventually gave Gurmeet another hugely popular character—Maan Singh Khurana—and established him as a romantic television hero.

From Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa to Khatron Ke Khiladi

Gurmeet continued to expand beyond acting. While working on Punar Vivah, he participated in Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa and went on to win the dance reality show. The actor later participated in Khatron Ke Khiladi, where he emerged as the first runner-up.

The advice Yash Chopra had given him years earlier also eventually came true. Chopra had told the young Gurmeet that his television work could one day lead to a film opportunity. Years later, filmmaker Mukesh Bhatt called him. Gurmeet subsequently made his Bollywood debut with Khamoshiyan.

Success didn’t make him stop working

Despite achieving success in television and films, Gurmeet Choudhary says he has never allowed himself to become complacent. In fact, his daily routine remains intensely disciplined. “I sleep by 9:30 pm and wake up at 4 am. I wake up, meditate, make my own coffee, listen to my favourite music and read my scripts. I witness the sunrise, do my workout, and schedule my day and meetings,” he said.

His commitment to dance has also remained intact.

“I still have a dance teacher. I practice every day. My teacher travels with me, and teaches me every day. Now he has also become my body language coach,” he added.

Why Gurmeet Choudhary refuses to give up

For Gurmeet Choudhary, discipline is rooted in where he came from and how difficult his journey was. “Because I have come from a very humble background, what we have achieved has come with a lot of difficulty. It is not easy. So I never feel like giving up on my discipline,” he said.

From making a cameo in Yeh Meri Life Hai to becoming one of television’s most recognisable actors, Gurmeet’s journey has been defined by persistence, reinvention and an unwillingness to stop after achieving success.

His success has also translated into social work. Gurmeet has been involved in initiatives supporting underprivileged children and helping cancer patients access treatment, among other charitable efforts. Today, Gurmeet and Debina are also building their dream farmhouse, a journey they have been documenting on their YouTube channel. He also owns a luxurious house in Mumbai’s Andheri West, reportedly worth Rs 16 crore.

What began with a 19-year-old arriving in Mumbai before he had even received his Class 12 results has since grown into a career spanning television, films, reality shows and social work. Gurmeet’s story is ultimately a reminder that sometimes, all it takes is a dream, relentless discipline and the willingness to keep showing up.