Rajkummar Rao: Defying convention

Rajkummar Rao | 29Actor

Superstition isn’t new in Bollywood: Actors, musicians, directors and producers tweak their names, drop surnames, and adapt screen names in the hope of better fortunes at the box office. But when Raj Kumar Yadav (29) rechristened himself Rajkummar Rao, it was a surprise. The actor had already earned critical acclaim and adulation in a career spanning merely three years. Why the alteration then? His mother likes it that way, he says.

Rao is basking in the aftermath of his latest release Shahid, a biopic of lawyer and human rights activist Shahid Azmi. “I am overwhelmed by all the praise. I never expected it,” he tells Forbes India. “Shahid was a game-changer for me. It has helped me immensely as a performer.”

Trained at FTII, Pune, Rao has been defying convention from his first film, Dibakar Banerjee’s Love Sex Aur Dhokha. Critics termed his performance riveting; the industry sat up and took notice.

He has worked with directors Bejoy Nambiar (Shaitan), Anurag Kashyap (Gangs of Wasseypur 2), Reema Kagti (Talaash), Abhishek Kapoor (Kai Po Che!) and Hansal Mehta (Shahid)—each with a distinct style of filmmaking.

“I’ve never planned my career,” says Rao. “It’s just that my choices have turned out to be unconventional. And I’ve been fortunate to work with directors who’re so clear about what they want from an actor. That makes my job easy.”

Before Shahid, Rao made his mark in Kai Po Che! as the quiet, self-assured Govind, a contrast to Sushant Singh Rajput’s Ishaan. Critic and filmmaker Pratim D Gupta says, “He’s one of the best actors in the country, right up there with Irrfan and Nawaz. He gets into the skin of a character, and you don’t know to what depths he can go until you watch him.” Unlikely anyone is going to miss Rao’s next film Queen, then.

-Sohini Mitter

The Other Contenders

Richa Chadda | 25Actress

She scorched the screen as the fiery Nagma Khatoon in Anurag Kashyap’s Gangs of Wasseypur, bagged several nominations and won the Filmfare Best Actress (Critics) award in 2013. One filmmaker hailed her as the “brightest spot in the AK camp” while another thinks she’s “one of the finest actresses of her time”. She proved her versatility in Fukrey, winning a Screen Award for Best Comic Role this year. -SM

Arijit Singh | 26Singer

Singh was a contestant in a reality show in 2005, but it was not until 2012, when Pritam gave him his first hit ‘Raabta’ in Agend Vinod, that he found his feet in Bollywood. He followed it up with ‘Phir Le Aaya Dil’ in Barfi! (he won a Filmfare nomination) and ‘Kabira’ in Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani. He struck gold with ‘Tum Hi Ho’ in Aashiqui 2; one of 2013’s biggest chartbusters, it won him Best Male Playback at the 2014 Screen Awards.- SM

Shraddha Kapoor | 22Actress

In 2010, Kapoor had the enviable distinction of debuting alongside Amitabh Bachchan and Ben Kingsley in Teen Patti. One of Bollywood’s many star kids, she garnered acclaim for her role in Aashiqui 2, and startled industry watchers when Vishal Bhardwaj signed her on for Haider, an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Critics have hailed Kapoor’s confident screen presence; she has bagged some plum endorsement deals.- SM

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Teen Trailblazer

Kishan SS | 18Actor, singer, film-editor, director

At 18, he describes himself as a genius. You could consider that presumptuous, even arrogant, coming from any other teenager, but not from Kishan. The Bangalore boy has been a familiar name in Karnataka for over a decade now. He started acting when he was four, playback singing at five, professional film-editing by eight. When he directed a full-scale commercial movie at nine, the world began to take notice.

His directorial debut, Kannada film C/O Footpath, was an emotional story of a slum boy trying to get educated. The movie, a commercial success, won critical acclaim and the National Golden Lotus Award for the Best Children’s Film. Kishan has acted in 30 feature films and more than 300 episodes of TV serials. Everyone in Sandalwood (as the Karnataka film industry is often termed) knows him as the boy who features in the Guinness book of records for being the youngest director of a feature film.

Kishan is working on directing his second movie, based on juvenile delinquency. He cannot understand how educated people can lose sight of justice, and demand death for juvenile criminals. Society has to take responsibility for children that are not nurtured properly, he believes.

The movie C/O Footpath 2 is an action film, based on the story of four slum teenagers who are believed to be criminals. Avika Gor, the young Balika Vadhu, plays the female lead. 

Kishan spent two years researching juvenile crime for the movie. “It is this eye for detail that sets him apart from a normal kid,’’ says Shyam Prasad, entertainment editor at Bangalore Mirror. Prasad has been tracking Kishan’s career and says his knowledge of movie-making techniques is very professional.

Like all good Indian teenagers, Kishan is pursuing academics with equal vigour. In a well-publicised case that paves the way for other prodigies, the Karnataka state education department allowed him to study for his Master’s degree in multimedia and animation straight after Class 10. 

Kishan says his real interest is in 3D cinema and holography. “Much of the work in these areas is being led by directors like James Cameron and Steven Spielberg, who are experimenting with and funding new technologies,’’ he says. The subject of stereoscopy (the technique of creating depth in an image) fascinates him far more than plain animation. Once he earns his Master’s, he would like to register for a PhD in optical studies at MIT. “That is where much of the cutting edge work is being done,” he says. - Cuckoo Paul

Experts: Khalid Mohamed, critic and filmmakerPratim D Gupta, critic and filmmakerCategory Coordinator: Sohini Mitte

The Other ContendersHuma Qureshi | 27Actress

Qureshi hit the ground running with her debut performance in Gangs of Wasseypur 2. She won critical acclaim for her role in Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana. But Dedh Ishqiya, which has been lauded as bold and gripping, proved to be one of the biggest testimonies to Qureshi’s acting prowess, as she held her own on screen with Naseeruddin Shah and Madhuri Dixit. She has also performed at a special event to raise funds for the flood-hit in Uttarakhand. - Kathakali Chanda

Alia Bhatt | 20Actress

The youngest Bhatt of Bollywood made her debut in Karan Johar’s Student of the Year and impressed with her stylish portrayal of a high school diva. But it’s her de-glam avatar in Imtiaz Ali’s yet-to-be-released Highway that is the talk of the town. Bhatt makes her music debut in this movie with a Punjabi ballad by AR Rahman. She has bagged big-ticket ad endorsements like Garnier and Maybelline, and has walked the ramp as a showstopper in premier fashion shows.- KC

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