Rajkummar Rao

My process of choosing scripts remains the same. Of whatever I read and whatever excites me is what I will continue to take up.

There are a lot of things people are calling me, and I'm overwhelmed. I have a lot of gratitude, but I just want to keep doing what I'm in love with, which is acting.

I don't know the reason why someone would not speak up about sexual harassment. I don't know why it doesn't happen here, but I am sure it exists not only in our industry, but every industry, it is there.

I don't know how my body would react if I don't eat for 10 days. In order to go through that experience, I almost did not eat or drink water for 15-20 days. I only had one carrot a day, a cup of black coffee, and a few sips of water.

I chased my dream, worked hard for it, and now I am actually living that dream. This doesn't happen to everyone.

There are times when I do feel very nervous when I start a film. And I feel very nervous before the release. I do get stuck in some scenes, but that's very natural and human. It happens to all the artistes in the world.

My parameter of judging a script has not changed over the years. I still go for a script where the story interests me. Yes, there are times where I might go wrong; say, out of five scripts, I might go wrong on one.

I knew that I was just one of those actors who came to Mumbai to achieve their dreams. I knew that nobody would welcome me with open arms and auditions were the only way to get a chance.

After my schooling, I started theatre. By the time I graduated, I was doing theatre 24x7. Luckily, the FTII (Film and Television Institute of India) acting course started.

It is not that I am only looking at doing biopics. But of course, as an actor, I always love portraying real-life characters because there is so much challenge involved in recreating somebody's life.

I take my work very seriously, but I don't take myself seriously.

It's very tough for someone who doesn't have a filmi background to get work in Bollywood. It's not a smooth ride unless you are really lucky. But I think one has to be prepared for that.

How content-driven cinema worked so well... Yeah, the shift is definitely happening... It is such a good change, and it is the kind of change I would like to see so that we just go to watch a film and not put them into brackets - that this is an art film or commercial movie.

When I was in Class Four, I wanted to be an astronaut. I am still fascinated with the universe. I decided I wanted to be an actor when I was in Class Eight.

I have always taken risks. I like doing films which are different.

'Stree' is something fresh and new. Audiences want to see different kind of content on-screen, and 'Stree' is exactly that. It is a unique genre - horror-comedy - which has not been explored much in our country.

I always feel secure. I can't be a pure actor if I feel insecure. I can't let other things take over my love for acting. For me, it's a giving art. It is not something which I am doing for myself. I am doing it for my co-actors, unless it is something like 'Trapped'.

After finishing my study in Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), I was mentally prepared for the struggle in the film industry.

I feel since people have started noticing me and enjoying my performance, and considering the kind of love I've got in 2017-18, many feel that I have arrived, because there's a belief that I can probably carry a film on my shoulders now.

Acting, for me, is giving to your co-actors.