Different strokes: A picture from the Singha family album; (below) Rannvijay at work

There?s the sexy Tata Young singing Dhoom macha de for the coolest biker movie of Bollywood all over the music channels. And there?s Rannvijay Singh Singha, who?s living the life, real and full colour, right now.

Rannvijay is travelling all over the country hosting MTV?s second part of the Roadies series ? currently on air ? the reality bikers? show where seven fresh-faced teens travel from one end of the country to another, and get a kick out of it. Rannvijay, who was voted the best Roadie of the first part, now spends his time promoting movies like Dhoom, looking spiky cool, wielding the MTV mike, and getting paid for it too.

But this wasn?t meant to be Rannvijay?s scene. He was supposed to be a strapping 21-year-old in army uniform and crew-cut hair, and was to have been attending tough physical routine or strategy classes at the Officers? Training Academy in Chennai. For generations, his family has been in the army ? the army was not a vocation for the Singhas, but a way of life. If all had gone as planned, he was supposed to have graduated from a gentleman cadet to a lieutenant in a few months.

Instead, a shot at the MTV Roadies show changed everything. Rannvijay was selected as one of the seven bikers who were to travel from Chennai to Chail in 40 days as part of the channel?s reality show. And when he came back, he realised he?d found a different take on life. To everyone?s dismay, Rannvijay didn?t want to go to the army anymore, despite having been selected for it already. He?s now all set to host the sequel to the Roadies show, and is travelling all over the country in search of bikers like himself.

The Singha family had started with serving in the British army five generations ago. Rannvijay?s grandfather retired as a lieutenant colonel in the Indian Army. His three uncles, father and even his maternal grandfather was in the army. All his cousins were either there or preparing to go. Rannvijay has gone through the entire grind last year. He took the Combined Defence Services (CDS) examination after graduating in commerce from Delhi?s Hansraj College. The results were out. And true to what everyone expected. Rannvijay Singh Singha was going to do what everyone in his family had done. Be an army officer.

?There was almost a tug of war over which regiment I should join. My father wanted me to join his regiment, the Rajputana Rifles. His friend, Colonel Saxena, wanted me to join the Guards. I was at the officers? mess in Hissar for my SSB tests, and all the senior army officials were debating over this,? he says now, in his spiked hair, funky leather wristband and bright red training pants, looking anything but an army official. Even after he made it to the finals of the Roadies show, Rannvijay was sure he?d return to join the army. ?I thought it was just a 40-day trip. I could come back to my old life after it was over.?

Only, he didn?t. Rannvijay chose a profession none of his ancestors, including his parents could have ever dreamt of ? veejaying.

Baljeet Singha recalls how unsure she and her husband, now posted in Africa, were when their son sounded out his decision. ?My husband kept on saying: ?What is he talking about??? she says. ?I took him for long walks, talked to him for hours on end. We were not at all sure what this profession held for him,? she reminisces.

Rannvijay wasn?t sure either. ?For seven months after the Roadies show ended, I didn?t have a job. I went about meeting the MTV guys and trying to convince them that I wanted to be a part of their outfit. They were already impressed with me after the way I dealt with the camera during the Roadies 1 show,? he says. While the other nine bikers went back to their old lives, Rannvijay remained with MTV.

But his father realised that his son was not chickening out of the army, he was doing a braver thing. He was following uncharted territory, which held no promises for him. ?He admired my courage to do something that may or may not have a future. He never questioned me once,? Rannvijay says with pride. His future is still not secure. He doesn?t know what he?s going to do three months later, when the show?s over. He?s getting a fat sum to host Roadies 2, but not enough to see him through the year. ?But I won?t give up,? he says.

He?s on his quest for a different kind of glory. And his parents are looking for other ways to carry the family legacy forward. Baljeet has her hopes pinned on younger son Harmanjeet, who?s taking his National Defence Academy (NDA) entrance exams this year. ?But I?m not sure I want to do it either. I?m the geeky sort. My brother was a super-achiever. He could have made a great officer,? says the shy teenager.

But mom Baljeet is not worried about tradition anymore. ?We have relatives, his cousins, who can carry it forward. I?m glad to know Donny (Rannvijay) has found his calling. Bachhe ki icchha poori ho gayi,? she says.

For that?s what a perfect family is all about. Supporting you no matter what. And thanks to his supportive parents, Rannvijay is certainly vrooming into his new career.