Ronit Roy, a well-known actor recognized for his significant supporting roles in both film and television, recently shared his experiences of struggling in the early days of his career. In a recent interview on the Hindi Rush podcast, Roy recounted the hardships he faced before his debut in the 1992 film Jaan Tere Naam.

Roy admitted to being introverted, which he believes contributed to his exclusion from many conversations and opportunities. "I honestly don't know why my career didn't take off in the early days," he said. "I used to think about it a lot before, but now I don't. I stay in my own zone, and I think a lot of it also happened because I stopped going to people for work, and hence, they stopped giving me opportunities".

Before his debut film, Roy faced dire financial constraints, often able to afford only one meal a day, and sometimes even having to skip that. He reminisced about a kind dhaba owner near Bandra station who helped him during those tough times. "There's a famous dhaba outside Bandra station," Roy recalled. "Every night I used to have food there, only one meal a day because that's what I could afford. They used to have kali dal and roti one day, and palak paneer with roti the next day… this would alternate, that's all I got".

There were days when he had no money at all. "One day, I just asked them for some roti and onions because I was out of money". The dhaba owner not only gave him the roti but also offered him daal. When Roy pointed out that he hadn't asked for daal, the owner replied, "Koi baat nahi meri taraf se, aaj aapka daal ka din hai (It's on me, because you always eat daal on this day)".

Roy's debut film, Jaan Tere Naam, did not fare well, leaving him without work for several years. Despite these challenges, Roy remains grateful for where he is today. He received ₹50,000 as his first payment for Jaan Tere Naam.