It's the 'Roadies' badge that people like : Rannvijay

He began as a Roadie in Season 1 and then moved on to hosting the show for seven seasons now. TellyChakkar caught up with the immensely popular VJ Rannvijay to know about his love affair with Roadies. How would you define Roadies from then to now? When Roadies 1 started, we didn’t know anything, though the show was loved. I hosted Roadies 2. We worked hard on Roadies 3. MTV had started shooting it in-house. It’s grown but it’s a real show. It is different every time. The atmosphere is different all the time. It’s not the same studio where everyone is singing every time, it’s different. It’s interesting, the fan base has increased. We never started the show for TRPs because MTV is a niche channel and we can’t compete for TRPs. We just did it as a passion. Do you get offers to host other shows as well? All the time! I get offers to host some of the biggest shows on GECs. I’ve repeatedly turned them down and somewhere they are going to stop offering me. But I am just happy being with MTV because it’s very cool, very young and I can get away with being myself, but now with films I don’t have time. Also MTV is a cool place to be with. I do my thing and then I do my films. Do you think it is a trend that you get into Roadies and then you end up doing a show or hosting a show? When you audition and get selected from 30,000 contestants you will come across a few who are VJ material. The channel looks for fresh people so someday if I get tired am sure they will find someone to replace me! I became the host of Roadies season 2 right after the first one. There was no VJ hunt, that time VJ hunts were quite popular. But Ayushmann didn’t become a VJ right after Roadies. He became an RJ and then a VJ and so did VJ Bani. You get noticed and get popular and the channel wants to experiment. We don’t promise anything but if the individual wants to make something out of it by coming on air then why not! Tell us about your journey from being a Roadie to hosting Roadies? Roadies just happened! Actually that time no one knew what Roadies was, it was the first show. We were not even sure if it would go on air. I just came because I was going to join the army, had two months and I was bang in the middle of it and the winner was going to get a bike. I was a biker so I thought I’d go for it, get the bike and then join the army. That was the first time I saw something outside the army. My grandfather was in the army, my dad was in the army, and I’d have been the sixth generation army guy. I cleared all my examinations, I got to know the production, I did a lot of tasks, adventurous tasks, met a lot of people, travelled, saw a lot of camera, lighting, everything and liked it. I came back and then Raghu got in touch with me and said I was getting some popularity and MTV was interested in doing something with me and it was interesting and if I could try it out. So I asked my parents, it was a difficult decision to make but I was given a year, ki ek saal mein agar kucch ho jata hai toh theek otherwise go to the army. I did not want to regret 20 years down the line that I could have done something. So went for it, Roadies 2 happened. MTV liked what I did and then seven years later am here. Somewhere down the line I was offered a few films, I did a couple, have done five films, one is releasing on 5th of November, so life’s going on and am trying my best. You have been associated with Roadies for eight seasons now, what is it that makes it so special for you? I am the only one who has stuck with them for eight seasons now! Numero Uno! (laughs) I have grown with the show, I was 20 when I started with the show and now am 27. I don’t think anyone has been associated with a reality show for so long I have done all the tasks myself, the fact that a lot of kids and boys like me not because I host but because I do the tasks, I go through the pain myself before I tell them. They know that I was young when I began and most of the roadies were younger than me, to tell them to do something, they can just turn around and tell me that why don’t you do it. Now they know that I go through it. I make sure more than hosting the show I go through the tasks. It’s not like Fear Factor that once the task is over it’s done it is what happens after the task is over, who gets eliminated etc. It’s more about the relationships and the bonds. It has become more competitive. If I didn’t win Season One or Ayushman didn’t win Season Two then it would have been different. Now we don’t promise any one a future but when you go back you get so much respect, so much love. The stakes are higher. Hum career banake nahin dete ki aapka album kaat denge or we will shoot a picture for you, you do it, and you get the five lakhs. It’s the ‘Roadies’ badge that people like. Don’t you think for the past couple of seasons it has been more of mind games than the tasks? Mind is pretty much the most difficult thing to train. But if you see six and seven, we have said it’s not mind games but you have to prove yourself. Even in the auditions last year we had something like Ride with Rannvijay where people had to do the tasks even before getting into the Top 13. So we did tasks. In Roadies 5 there was a lot of politics but Ashu won and because he had broken his foot he didn’t do a couple of tasks but still won. We don’t say that the most physically fit person wins otherwise we would give it to that person but Roadies is about the person in totality. Are you creatively involved with Roadies in terms of creative inputs? All the time! Be it the tasks, content, press conferences. I have been a Roadies, been there and am above average I guess. Tell us about your rapport with Raghu? Raghu is like my elder brother. His mother says I had twins but since Rannvijay has come, I have triplets. I am the eldest in my family and I never had anyone to look after me. I missed Raghu a lot during the times he wasn’t part of Roadies. You have a crazy fan following, any weird incidents with your fans? I go to colleges for different things, lectures or seminars or just as a guest. I had these ripped jeans and I was on stage, saying something and this girl jumped up though I don’t know what she wanted to do. Anyway her hand got stuck in one of the rips and it just got ripped. So one side was this ripped jeans and the other side had become shorts. It was funny and embarrassing but everyone had a laugh. Tell us something about yourself that no one knows… I have five bikes. I love watching films at home, I love watching sitcoms. I am an adventure freak, I love to hog be it junk or oily food. Then I work out extra.