Aashiqui star Rahul Roy on brain stroke recovery: ‘I didn’t know if I would walk or talk again’

Rahul Roy's return to acting comes after one of the most difficult chapters of his life.

The Aashiqui star, who shot to fame in the early 1990s before winning the first season of Bigg Boss, suffered a brain stroke in November 2020 while shooting LAC – Live The Battle in Kargil. Six years on, Roy is gradually easing back into work and will next appear in the upcoming series Super Badshah.

The journey back, however, has been anything but easy. The stroke left him uncertain whether he would regain basic abilities like walking and speaking, and it forced sweeping changes to his lifestyle.

'I didn't even know if I would be able to walk or talk again'

Roy suffered a cerebrovascular stroke while filming in Kargil in November 2020. He was first taken to Srinagar before being airlifted to Mumbai, where he was admitted to Nanavati Hospital and spent time in the ICU.

The early days were especially frightening, as the actor had no way of knowing what his recovery would look like.

Speaking to Free Press Journal, Roy looked back on that uncertainty: "The only thing I was sceptical about was my speech problem because of the brain stroke which I had in 2020 when I was shooting in Kargil. But Karanvir was supportive throughout. After my brain stroke, I didn't even know if I would be able to walk or talk again."

His recovery leaned heavily on time and family support. Roy also overhauled his lifestyle in the stroke's aftermath. Once a heavy smoker who ate non-vegetarian food, he has since given up both habits entirely. His daily routine now revolves around medication taken after breakfast. "Every day after breakfast, I have eight medicines. But things are much better now than before," he said.

From Aashiqui heartthrob to Bigg Boss winner

Long before his health struggles, Roy had become one of Bollywood's biggest stars almost overnight. He made his film debut opposite Anu Aggarwal in Mahesh Bhatt's Aashiqui (1990), a film that became a phenomenon and turned him into one of the most recognisable faces of his generation.

He went on to appear in films including Junoon before pivoting to reality television, where he won the inaugural season of Bigg Boss in 2007, defeating Carol Gracias to claim the ₹1 crore prize. His career saw several ups and downs in the years that followed.

Roy's most recent major film role came in Kanu Behl's psychological drama Agra, released in November 2025. He now takes another step back into the spotlight with Kuku TV's Super Badshah, in which he plays an underworld don opposite Karanvir Bohra.