Rhea Chakraborty began Rs 40 cr brand as she had no work, almost named it ‘Chudail Ka Badla’

Actor Rhea Chakraborty and her brother Showik Chakraborty have opened up about how the fallout from the 2020 Sushant Singh Rajput case changed their lives and careers, eventually leading them to launch their clothing brand, Chapter 2 Drip. Speaking to Neha Dhupia and Angad Bedi, the siblings revealed that after 2020, work opportunities dried up for both of them, forcing them to start afresh and build a business together.

Showik admitted that launching a business wasn’t part of their original plan but became a necessity after opportunities dried up.

“Both of us started this because we had no choice. Her acting career was going through ups and downs. I had completed my MBA, but I wasn’t getting any work.”

Rhea said, “After 2020, we stopped getting work. No one was signing me and no one was hiring him.”

Showik recalled that although several people promised to help him find employment after he came out, nothing materialised.

“After I came out, a lot of people tried to help, saying, ‘We’ll find him a job somewhere.’ But no job offer ever came. One day, we were sitting together and I asked, ‘What do we do next? There is nothing. I don’t want to waste my prime years.’ That’s when she came up with the idea of starting a brand that stands for something.”

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Why Rhea wanted to name the brand ‘Chudail Ka Badla’

Rhea revealed that the brand went through several name ideas before becoming Chapter 2.

“First, we called the brand Chudail Ka Badla. I really wanted to call it that and make cool T-shirts, but everyone said it sounded negative and funny. Then I wanted to call the brand Black Sheep, and eventually Chapter 2 came along.”

She explained that the idea for slogan T-shirts came from her own experience after her arrest.

“T-shirts became a very important part of my Chapter One because when I was arrested, I wore a T-shirt that said, ‘Roses are red, violets are blue, let’s smash the patriarchy, me and you.’ It spoke for me when no one else spoke for me.”

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Rhea said that inspired her to create clothing that could help others express themselves during difficult phases of life.

“So I thought, can we make such T-shirts for people that resonate with them when they are going through a phase where they can’t speak for themselves or are confused? It was close to feeling empowering, but not in an overpowering way. So T-shirts just felt right.”

‘I still have PTSD’

Showik also spoke about the long-lasting emotional impact of the past few years, saying the trauma hasn’t completely left him.

“Everything went south. No one can predict these things. There was a bad phase and we came through it, but it took us four or five years. Some days, I still think, ‘Did all this really happen to me?'”

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He revealed that even the sound of a doorbell would trigger anxiety.

“I have PTSD. Every time the doorbell rang, I felt like someone was coming after us. That’s the kind of PTSD you have to live with.”

Showik credited therapy with helping him cope.

“I have done a lot of therapy over the last few years. I think that’s a very important aspect for everybody. I felt I had to let it out somewhere. Someone had to hear my side of the story, and I didn’t feel comfortable talking about it with anyone except a non-judgmental person.”

When asked whether he feels his side of the story has been fully told, Showik replied, “No. Maybe in a couple of years, I’ll write a book.”

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‘Trauma stays with you’

Rhea agreed that some experiences leave a permanent mark.

“When something like this happens, it’s not something you can fully get over. It is trauma. It stays with you in your body, if not your mind. You have issues because of it. PTSD. You do therapy, you deal with it. Ours was public, so everybody knows about it and talks about it, and that’s okay. But at the end of the day, the question is whether we are healed enough to work, run a successful business and still have the desire to do it.”

Rhea says she’s single

The conversation also touched on the siblings’ personal lives. Showik revealed that he is currently in a relationship.

Rhea, meanwhile, said she is single and isn’t actively looking for a relationship, though she would welcome companionship at the right time.

“Companionship would be nice at some point. Evolved is the word I look for in my partner.”

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Her remarks come months after she was linked to Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath. The two were spotted together, fuelling dating rumours, though neither Rhea nor Kamath publicly confirmed the speculation.

Sushant Singh Rajput’s death and what followed after

Following actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death in June 2020, Rhea Chakraborty and her brother Showik Chakraborty came under intense public scrutiny during multiple investigations into the case. Both were arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in a drugs-related probe linked to the investigation. Rhea spent 27 days in jail before being granted bail by the Bombay High Court, while Showik was also granted bail after spending time in judicial custody. Rajput’s family had levelled allegations against Rhea, including abetment of suicide, theft and financial misconduct. Nearly five years later, in 2025, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) filed its closure report, clearing both Rhea and Showik of the allegations.

Since then, Rhea has gradually rebuilt her life and career. She co-founded the clothing brand Chapter 2 Drip with her brother Showik, a venture born out of their shared experience of starting over after 2020. Today, the brand is estimated to be valued at around Rs 40 crore.