One thing that stood out about the recent Bareilly Ki Barfi trailer, was Rajkummar Rao’s dorky accent as a saree salesman. It was vastly different from his role as Shaurya in Vikramaditya Motwane’s Trapped, but then it’s hardly surprising when it comes to the wide range the actor has displayed in his career. He’s the everyday chameleon who disappears into films.
As he sat down for a chat with CNN News 18’s Rajeev Masand, he showed great candour talking about the newly-found recognition. The perils of being an outsider, the necessity of passion for his work and the one actor he continues to idolise.
The conspicuous hat is the first thing that comes up, and even as it treads on about his ‘method acting’ where Rao has shaved his head (which is rare among young actors), put on 12 kilos and has begun smoking for the part, the actor becomes almost shy talking about it and calls it ‘no big deal.’
Masand brought back something Rao had said in the 2013 Actor’s Roundtable where he said 3 bad films could mean the end for him in Bollywood. Have things changed?
Going on, he even slightly addressed the nepotism debate.
He talked about the necessity to keep doing your most honest work, and finding a way to break-even with it.
Does he continue to feel like an outsider in Bollywood, after his 7-year career?
He even spoke about the challenge of being stereotyped early on in your career, and the sexual deviant he played in his first two films.
The turning point in his career was Hansal Mehta’s Shahid, which won him the national award and the countrywide spotlight.
He spoke about his job as an actor to keep his side of the honesty, and not get seduced by the numbers.
The ultimate question any talented actor gets asked – does he ever want to become a star in the future? Does the fame seduce him?
You can watch the whole interview here:
More power to genuine talents like this one. May 2017 deliver on the promise it holds for this young actor. Kudos Rajkummar Rao!
Design Credits: Sanil Modi
