Riju Bajaj

reference content Riju Bajaj, born in Delhi on December 8, comes from a family rooted in the arts—his father, Ram Gopal Bajaj, and mother, the late Chandrakala Khemchand Prakash. He ditched college halfway through, packed his bags, and landed in Bombay in 1990 to chase acting full-time. But his journey actually kicked off way earlier—like, at age 11—when he hit the stage with 'Kya Yeh Sach Bol Raha Hai', thanks to a National School of Drama workshop. TV soon came calling, and Riju made waves in 'Lekhu', playing a scrappy, ambitious scientist from a poor family. But the real turning point? His role in Govind Nihalani’s 'Tamas', which snagged him a national award nomination in 1988. Suddenly, big-name directors like Amol Palekar and Shyam Benegal wanted him for films like 'Thoda Sa Roomani Ho Jayen', 'Antarnaad', and 'Suraj Ka Satvaan Ghoda'. Riju also killed it on TV with 'Humraahi', playing a rebellious character who—no surprise—also runs away to become an actor. While working on India's first reality show, 'The Mating Game Show', he caught the directing bug and started assisting Govind Nihalani on 'Sanshodhan' and 'Hazaar Chaurasi Ki Maa'. From there, he branched out, directing for television, including 'India's Most Wanted' and 'Phir Bhi', and co-writing the film 'Yun Hota To Kya Hota'. He’s held creative director gigs at Fox TV Studios, Hema Malini Media, and Swastik Productions. By 2017, he’d even launched the LIFFT India Filmotsav in Lonavla. These days, Riju is still doing his thing on both sides of the camera, acting and directing, never really slowing down.