Rajkummar shelled out `10,000 hoping for work

Rajkummar Rao has made a name for himself in Hindi cinema with his noteworthy roles in films such as Shahid (2012), Kai Po Che! (2013) and Aligarh (2016). But not many know that the actor had to wait two years for the ‘right film’ to come his way. And that’s because he wasn’t up for taking just about any film for good money.

Rajkummar, who finally debuted with Love Sex Aur Dhokha (2010), says, “In the beginning, people offer you roles for money. But I wanted to do work that excited me as an actor. I knew the kind of work I wanted to do and the people I wanted to work with.”

Recalling the “tough” twoyear phase, he reveals that his desperation for a good role made him pay `10,000 to a casting agency that promised to get him work. “Those times were different! You want to meet everyone who says they can get you work. I met one or two random people who said they knew people in the industry. They said register with us, and the next thing I knew, nothing happens. I paid some random agency `10,000 because they said they work with Bollywood filmmakers. It was a lot of money at the time,” he says.

The actor, whose hometown is Gurgaon, says family support kept him going. “Mumbai is an expensive city. Finance is a major issue for anyone from another city. I had money because my family was supporting me. They were like, ‘be there’ and ‘hang on’. Family support is a major help,” says Rajkummar.