Rajkummar Rao on Bheed: Word-of-mouth is the biggest PR strategy today, a good film will find its audience – Times of India

It is certainly one of my most special films. The reason is the subject and the way Anubhav sir has executed the idea and the film being black and white makes it even more special. The film is very real in nature and has got some of the finest actors of our country.
How was the anubhav of working with Anubhav Sinha?

It was such a fabulous experience. He is very brave and I am very proud to call him a dear friend. He is one of the finest directors I’ve worked with. He is so clear in his vision and he makes you feel so comfortable on set. His sets are so much fun. He invests a lot of time in writing which I feel is one of the most important aspects of film making and he is the only director I’ve worked with who reads his script everyday before starting his day on set. I can’t wait to work with him again soon.

Interestingly, you have played a displaced migrant earlier in Citylights. How closely do you identify with the theme of the COVID migrants in Bheed?

It’s a full circle for me. Just yesterday I was talking to Patralekhaa and we were talking about how in CityLights I play the migrant worker coming to a big city in search of work and in BHEED it’s about the migrant workers going back to their respective places. Both are very hard hitting stories and deal with the human spirit.

As an actor how important is it for you to be part of films that address social issues?

It’s always great as an artist, if you can also initiate a conversation about some of our social problems and make people aware about some of the issues we face as a society. I want to be a responsible actor where I entertain my audiences through some engaging stories but also do something for the society through my work and otherwise.

The cinema industry is going through an unprecedented crisis. Why do you think people will go to see Bheed in the movie theatres?

They will go for an important and engaging story, Anubhav Sinha and a great ensemble cast. I believe word of mouth is the biggest PR strategy these days. If your film is good it will find its audience.

In your OTT debut Monica My Darling, you played a shady opportunist. Bad guy, good guy… what do you enjoy playing more and why?

I like playing everything. That’s the fun of being an actor when you don’t get typecast and keep exploring new characters with every film. I would love to continue playing varied characters in all my films.

Your last film Badhai Do also got a responsive audience. Many actors are shy of playing gay characters. What makes you so fearless?

Thank you so much. I don’t know honestly. I just go with my gut feeling without calculating too much. I’m not here for any other reason apart from just doing really good work. I want to be a part of films which I can be proud of myself and make my country proud on an international platform as well. Badhaai Do is something I am very very proud of. I got so much of love for Badhaai Do. I’ll always be grateful to Harshavardhan Kulkarni, my director and a dear friend, for giving me Shardul. I can’t comment on other actors, to each his own, but I love playing challenging characters and want to grow as an actor with every film.

As one of our impactful contemporary actors, what do you think of mass entertainers like RRR and Pathaan doing phenomenal business?

It’s great for the industry, we need more and more films to do well at the box office.

What are your forthcoming projects?

Next is Guns and Gulaabs, my first Netflix series with the most amazing Raj and DK. Then there is SRI which am very excited about as well with Tushar Hiranandani, it’s a biopic of a visually impaired boy named Srikanth Bolla and currently I am shooting for this beautiful film Mr And Mrs Mahi with Janhvi Kapoor directed by Sharan Sharma for Dharma Productions.