Rajkummar Rao: Bareilly Ki Barfi changed things for me, proud of Trapped

It won’t be an exaggeration to say that 2024 has been the year of Rajkummar Rao. With back-to-back releases and after delivering the biggest Bollywood hit ever, Stree 2, he is gearing up for the release of Vicky aur Vidya Ka Woh Wala Video. In an exclusive interview with India Today Digital, the actor opened up about his journey in Bollywood, listing performances that are close to his heart, and how he is perceiving all the love he has received from fans.
“As an actor, for me, the most important thing is that the film has to be good. I should be part of films that are cherished and loved by the people who watch it. Whether those people watching my films are two or two lakh, they eventually have to enjoy watching my film and that’s what ultimately matters to me, as I should be proud of the film,” Rajkummar Rao told us during the conversation.
He added, “What certainly can’t be matched is the feeling of a good film doing exceptionally well at the box office too. This feeling is the most gratifying because, as an actor, you are aware that you have delivered a good performance. The film has turned out to be amazing and now when it’s open for the audiences, they have really enjoyed it too – this feeling then is surreal.”
Speaking of his most underrated performance that has been extremely close to his heart, Rajkummar Rao said, “Sometimes it happens that when you make a good film, due to some reasons it doesn’t end up doing so well or work at the box office. For example, I did a film called Trapped that I’m just so proud about but it had a very limited release and it didn’t really catch too many eyes of the people at that time. But, having said that, this is a film that I’m equally proud off as I’m of any of my other films that did well at the box office. Trapped will be a part of my filmography right up there too because irrespective of its box office performance, it’s a film that I take pride in doing.”
He continued, “On the other hand, there are films like Bareilly Ki Barfi, Badhaai Do, Stree, Mr and Mrs Mahi, Srikanth that people also love and appreciate simultaneously. When you give your heart and soul to a film, to your character and people end up liking that, appreciating that and give you love for all of your hard work and your sincerity, I feel that this is the biggest of it all that matters to me.”
Talking more about Trapped and Bareilly Ki Barfi in particular, Rajkummar Rao shared, “People who watched Trapped have always walked up to me and said how much they liked it. In fact, when it came on OTT, a lot of people ended up watching it, and it was then that people saw my sincerity in delivering that role as an actor. In my career, I potentially feel whatever I have experienced or achieved, it’s all been very organic. A lot of things changed for me after Bareilly Ki Barfi, when people saw me doing comedy for the first time because, at that time, I was mostly doing dramas, so not many people imagined me doing a comic role. But, how I see it is that I’m just playing my part and what’s expected out of me as a character for that particular role. The sincerity I had for my character in Shahid is the same sincerity with which I have done a Bareilly or a Stree or any other commercial film I’m doing next.”
Rajkummar Rao and Tripti Dimri-starrer Vicky Vidya Ka Woh Wala Video is all set to release in theatres on October 11, 2024.