Akshaye Khanna On Emerging From Personal Tragedies To Taking Centrestage Once Again

He has just finished a round of squash and is kind of glowing with good health.

Akshaye Khanna has called me to an upmarket SoBo club for the interview. He takes me towards the poolside, orders some tea and goes away to change. Coming back, he pours me some tea and prepares his own cup. I mention it seems like we’re having this conversation in his living room, so cool and collected he seems in the surroundings. He laughs and says he considers the sports club his second home. The rain outside and the hot tea make a great ambience for a chat. Of course, ten minutes with him and you realise he isn’t a talker. You have to constantly prod him to elicit a response.

We chat for a while or rather I talk while he listens. The conversation veers towards his sabbatical from the industry. Getting reflective, he explains his reasons for staying away, “There were some personal issues. But to be honest, I was not happy with the work I was getting. So, I thought rather not work than do something that I was not sure of.” After a pause, he adds, “I realised how difficult it was not being able to express yourself creatively. To be able to survive that length of time and not lose your mind or begin compromising was difficult.”

The rain is still lashing outside. After looking at it for some time and meditating on its ebb and flow, he points out that his hiatus was indeed a learning experience. “I learnt that I had the innate strength to endure that period. Four years is truly long considering how fast time is moving. Public memory is short,” he muses.