Rajkummar Rao Says Story, Not Budget, Drives His Film Choices Amid Fewer Parallel Cinema Roles

By A Staff Reporter

Delhi: Actor Rajkummar Rao, known for his critically acclaimed roles in films such as Shahid, Newton, and Trapped, has addressed observations about the decline of parallel cinema in his recent filmography. In response to a question about his shift toward more commercial cinema after the success of Stree, Rao emphasised that he remains committed to meaningful storytelling, regardless of a film's scale.

“It’s not like there is a reduction,” Rao said. “I did Shahid, Newton, and Trapped with some amazing filmmakers. These filmmakers are still trying to tell different kinds of stories.”

Rao added that the absence of recent smaller, indie films in his career isn't by design. “As a maker and as an actor, you don’t want to do the same thing just because people loved it. You also want to explore something new.” He revealed he is currently collaborating with director Vikramaditya Motwane on Dada, the upcoming biopic of cricketer Sourav Ganguly, indicating his continued engagement with content-driven cinema.

He also noted a lack of suitable scripts reaching him. “I would still love to do it (Trapped-like films), but those kinds of stories are not reaching me, to be honest.”

Clarifying his selection process, Rao stated, “I never see the budget of the film. For me, it’s the story, the director, and the producer — these are the only three things that matter while saying yes to a film.”