Rajkummar Rao remains open to small, pivotal roles in woman-centric films

National award-winning actor Rajkummar Rao said he was never affected by the controversy about his film Newton (2017), which has been chosen as India's official entry for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar nomination.

After Newton was announced as India's Oscar entry earlier this year, some media reports indicated a similarity in its plot with an earlier Iranian film Secret Ballot. The comparisons were put to rest by the makers.

Rao told the IANS news agency: "I was not affected by the controversy because I knew these two are different films. I knew it from the script. However, I am happy that everyone who created the controversy has got an answer when the producer [of Secret Ballot] made a statement mentioning that the film is different from Secret Ballot."

The actor will next be seen in the film Shaadi Mein Zaroor Aana, where he stars opposite Kriti Kharbanda. The story of the film revolves around two young people and their journey of five years.

Giving an insight into his character in the film, Rajkummar Rao said: "My character has a journey that travels the phase from a college pass-out of a small town to falling in love with a girl and to becoming a successful, rich guy. It is a revenge story and how love makes you do things that you cannot do otherwise."

Shaadi Mein Zaroor Aana is another of Rao's films to be set in the small-town milieu after Behen Hogi Teri (2017) and Bareilly Ki Barfi (2017).

Does he find it interesting to work in such films as this genre is working at the box office? Rao replied: "See, for me, experience counts first, and then the numbers. I have to like the film enough to invest my time. Rest will fall in place.

"Yes, Bareilly Ki Barfi worked and I am happy. See, I am trying to say that at the end of the day, I do not want to say that I shouldn't have done this film. Therefore, liking the film from my end is important."

Interestingly, well-known actors are becoming part of a woman-centric films and playing small but significant parts — like Aamir Khan in the recently released Secret Superstar and Manav Kaul in the Vidya Balan-starrer Tumhari Sulu (2017), which is set for release on 17 November. What does he think of this trend?

"I see no harm in playing small parts in a female-centric film if the role is pivotal," Rao said. "I have done it in Queen (2014). For me, it is the importance of the character and not the length. So yes, I will be doing that in future."

Shaadi Mein Zaroor Aana will be released on 10 November.