'We arranged our love marriage'

Up Close and Personal

They met under the arc lights and acted together in two or three films. It did not take long for them to realise that their on-screen chemistry worked off it too. Within no time, they decided to live together for the rest of their lives.

Rajeshwari Sachdev and Varun Badola have been married for three years now. But they were different from the word go. Once Cupid struck them, they got their parents involved. “We arranged our ‘love marriage’. We did all the running around for our wedding. The journey has been wonderful and truly rewarding,” Varun told Metrolife.

The journey has been smooth in spite of Rajeshwari and Varun being two individuals with very strong identities, tastes and preferences. For they respect each other and say neither would tread over the other’s path.

They have made a name for themselves as individuals and also are among the most sought after couple in the showbiz industry. “I always wanted to marry a man who was just as professional as I am and someone who is successful in what he is doing. And I have found that in Varun. I criticise him whenever I have to and we pat each other when we do well,” Rajeshwari says.

 As for Varun, he says he never nurtured any huge expectations about the woman he wanted to marry. “I just wanted someone who would be compatible with me and I found that in Rajeshwari, who is also a beautiful woman. What more can I ask for?” he quips.

Varun began his career as a television actor in the early 90s and got his first break in Banegi Apni Baat on Zee TV. He is remembered for his roles in various television serials such as Koshish Ek Asha, Rajdhani, Rabba Ishq Na Hove, Kutumb and Des Mein Niklla Hoga Chand, to mention a few. He has also acted in a couple of Bollywood films but he largely confines to the television.

Singer and actress Rajeshwari has won the national award for her performance in Sardari Begum in 1996. She is most popular as anchor for Antakshari, a singing competition on Zee TV.

The two have grown together in their personal and professional lives.

They say they’re cool about each other. “There’s really not one particular thing that
 I don’t like about him. He’s a loving husband and a great actor on screen,” says Rajeshwari.

Sharing the secret about their smooth life, Varun says, “Live life simple and don’t venture into complicated and forbidden areas when you are married. It’s always better to get married to someone who understands, loves and respects you for the person that you are.”  

So how do they describe their on screen chemistry? “Sometimes I have found it much easier to co-star with colleagues and friends rather than with Rajeshwari. See for instance if there’s a scene where I have to woo my wife who happens to be my co-star it would be difficult because there are already memories and moments that we have shared together. How can one woo one’s wife?” wonders Varun.  He rates the couple’s performance as nothing less than, “brilliant” in Phir Se, a movie that was never released.

He found the performance in Nach Baliye the toughest and the most difficult but a memorable one indeed.  

Would the two of them host, direct, script out or even produce a show together? “We will have to wait for the right idea, the right cut and the right time,” says Rajeshwari. Varun reasons that there’d be many expectations from them and they must be able to live up to those expectations. “The production has to be worth the effort and anything less than ‘perfect’ would be unacceptable to people,” he adds.

The couple has adopted Hasina, a young girl and decided to sponsor her education. They have decided to take care of her needs as long as they can afford to do so. “We had decided that whenever we earn enough money we would sponsor a child. It must be a commitment we can live up to,” say Rajeshwari.

The couple says they hardly get to go on a planned vacation. Travel mostly happens on work. But Varun and Rajeshwari do travel across to the former’s hometown Gharwal where he says lie vivid memories of his childhood. The duo loves food and Varun gorges on just about anything he gets, but Rajeshwari says she keeps a close watch to make sure he doesn’t over-indulge. Rajeshwari says she always prefers to give Varun home-cooked food.

How do they manage to keep so fit? Rajeshwari jokes saying that she dances on his head and Varun says that he plays badminton and works out a great deal.

What memories do the couple have of Bangalore? “I have visited the City as a child and what struck me most was the weather and of course the warmth of the people. But on the last visit to the City we were stuck at the airport (HAL) for 45 minutes unable to drive out because of the traffic that just refused to move an inch,” says Rajeshwari and adds, “I realised then that Bangalore has grown and changed a great deal.”