Karan Oberoi is the name that was on the lips of every Indian girl back in the late 90s and early 2000s, as he was one of the hottest actors in the television industry. At the peak of his career, Karan Oberoi was even compared with Hollywood actors, courtesy of his dashing looks. From impressive acting skills, dashing looks, massive fan-following, and a humble and loving personality, he had everything to be one of the most successful Indian actors of all time.
One can understand the level of Karan Oberoi's acting and looks by the fact that he made his acting debut in television with the iconic show, Swabhimaan, at the mere age of 17. The show was directed by the critically acclaimed filmmaker, Mahesh Bhatt. After working under Mahesh Bhatt, Karan featured in some episodes of the legendary horror show, Aahat. It was in 1998 when Karan got the chance to work in Sanjay Upadhyay's soap opera, Saaya.
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In the following years, Karan Oberoi featured in two renowned TV shows, Milan and Dishayen. In 2004, Karan also made his Bollywood debut with the film, Kiss Kisko. The film opened the doors of the Hindi film industry for Karan but failed to create an impact at the box office.
However, it was Karan's role as 'Raghav Oberoi' in the television show, Jassi Jaissi Koi Nahin, that brought him immense love and took his acting career to a completely new level. Apart from acting, Karan Oberoi also hosted two major reality shows, Titan Antakshari and The Great Indian Comedy Show, which made him a household name in India.
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When Karan Oberoi and Mona Singh were shooting for their show, Jassi Jaissi Koi Nahin, in 2006, the former fell in love with the actress, courtesy of the latter's simplicity and fun-loving nature. After some time, Mona too fell in love with Karan, and the couple dated each other for 16 to 18 months, the latter proposed to the actress for marriage. On the one hand, Mona was dodging the questions about her marriage, and Karan, on the other hand, confided the year of their marriage to the media. Unfortunately, the couple parted ways mutually and never revealed the reason behind their breakup.
However, in June 2024, in a conversation with Siddharth Kannan on his YouTube channel, Karan Oberoi revealed the reason behind his breakup with Mona Singh after almost 18 years. The actor admitted that he could not understand that Mona was rising in her career, and she wanted to focus on it. Karan added that he took the rejection so harshly and blamed himself for it, thinking he lacked something. He said:
"Jassi was a steller show, she was a national icon. Us time mereko samjh nahi aata tha. Aaj smjh aata hai ki ki she was a rising one. Jab aap chote hote ho toh sochte ho kyu yaar mere mein kuch kami hai jo shaadi nahi karna chahte. Aisa nahi tha, she wanted to focus on her career."
After his breakup with Mona Singh in the year 2008, Karan Oberoi featured in the iconic show, Zindagi Badal Sakta Hai Hadsaa as 'Inspector Abhimanyu Singh'. Once again, he won the audiences' hearts with his performance. In 2017, when OTT started making a lot of noise in India, Karan Oberoi worked on the web series, Inside Edge and proved the mettle of his acting skills. Karan played the character, 'Imtiaz Khan' in the web series, but no one knew that it was the last time they will watch him as an actor. The reason behind it is the 2019 rape case in which Karan was arrested.
On May 4, 2019, Karan Oberoi's life suffered the hardest blow when a 34-year-old woman accused him of rape and extortion. The lady claimed to be an astrologer by profession and filed an FIR against Karan in which she stated that Karan raped her between January 2017 to February 2018.
Not only this, but the lady also accused Karan of making a false promise of marriage to her and extorting money from her. On May 5, 2019, Karan was arrested by Mumbai police based on the severe accusations made by the woman. The actor spent almost a month in jail, and on June 7, 2019, he was given bail by the Bombay High Court.
When Karan Oberoi was in jail, the woman, who accused him of rape and extortion filed a fresh FIR in which she stated that she was attacked and was told to take the case back. The woman revealed in her FIR that she was out on a morning walk when two bikers attacked her with a paper cutter and threw away a chit at her, saying, 'Take the case back'. The Mumbai police immediately arrested four men on May 30, 2019.
One of the men detained by the police turned out to be connected with the astrologer woman's former lawyer, Ali Kaasif Khan. When police reached out to Kaasif Khan, he revealed that she had planned the attack. Oshiwara Police arrested the woman on charges of criminal conspiracy and filing a false FIR. She also paid a fine of Rs. 20,000 at the Bombay High Court.
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In an old interview with IWM Buzz, Karan Oberoi shared his views on being arrested in a false rape case. The actor revealed that his entire family was in deep shock, and they could not process the things happening back then. Karan shared that his father's health deteriorated, while his mother cried every single day when he was in jail. The actor shared that his family has given many soldiers to the country, and it was saddening for them to see Karan's name being involved in a rape case. He said:
"It has been quite an ordeal, but this is how it is. This is a shocking reflection of the time we live in. And this brings to notice the overwhelming need for a #MenToo. The entire system needs an overhaul. My father was in really bad shape. My mother had been crying for 35 days. Our family comes from a rich legacy of soldiers and veterans of war. It was so saddening when my father asked this question – We are from a family of war heroes, is this the nation we have built?"
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In June 2024, Karan Oberoi opened up about the time when he was sent to jail on the charges of a rape case in a candid conversation with Siddharth Kannan on his YouTube channel. The actor revealed that he didn't eat anything for the first seven days and barely slept during the first nine days. It was a dark phase for the actor, who almost died due to asphyxiation. For the unversed, asphyxiation is caused by a lack of oxygen and can quickly lead to severe brain injury that can eventually lead to death. Sharing the details of his asphyxiation episode in jail, Karan Oberoi said:
"It was a dark phase in my life. It was like visiting pataal lok (hell) for me. When you don't know if you are going to survive tomorrow because you can possibly die in these conditions… I didn't eat anything for the first seven days. For the first nine days, I didn't sleep. I almost died because of asphyxiation in an episode. I don't want to discuss it but I thought this is the end, I could see my life flash in front of my eyes. I have claustrophobia and they put me in a place… kaal kothri mein daal dia tha and I thought this is the end of my life."
The false rape case disrupted Karan Oberoi's professional life, and he took many years in order to bring his life back on track. Fortunately, all the bad things are in the past, and the actor is living a happy life now. With 39.8K followers on his Instagram handle, Karan has become more famous for his singing talent all over again.
For the uninitiated, Karan Oberoi formed a band called A Band of Boys back in 2001 with Siddharth Haldipur, Sherrin Varghese, Chintoo Bhosle, and Sudhanshu Pandey. The band is back with some of its original members, and people are crazy to see Karan leading it from the front. Apart from this, Karan has been invested in penning books, writing scripts, and doing multiple things. We hope he continues to lead a healthy and prosperous life after what has happened in the past.
What are your thoughts on Karan Oberoi's lesser-known story? Do you find it inspirational that he is leading a happy life and is now fully concentrated on his singing career? Let us know.
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