Rajkummar Rao

Rajkummar Rao (born Raj Kumar Yadav) is an Indian actor. A versatile actor in Hindi cinema since the early 2010s, he is known for his performances in over thirty films across a wide spectrum of genres in both independent and commercial cinema. He is the recipient of several accolades including a National Film Award, four Filmfare Awards and an Asia Pacific Screen Award. In 2017, he appeared on Forbes India's Celebrity 100 list. After studying acting at the Film and Television Institute of India, Rao made his acting debut with the anthology film Love Sex Aur Dhokha (2010) and took on supporting roles in the films Gangs of Wasseypur – Part 2 and Talaash: The Answer Lies Within (both 2012). He had his breakthrough in 2013 with critically acclaimed performances in the dramas Kai Po Che! And Shahid. His portrayal of lawyer Shahid Azmi in the latter won him the National Film Award for Best Actor and the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor. Rao's career progressed with supporting roles in Queen (2014), Aligarh (2015), and Bareilly Ki Barfi (2017), with the latter winning him the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor. He had lead roles in the independent films Trapped (2016) and Newton (2017), with the former winning him his second Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor and the latter earning him the Asia Pacific Screen Award for Best Performance by an Actor. Rao had his biggest success to that point in the comedy horror film Stree (2018), and his first English-film role in the satire The White Tiger (2021). Further praise came for his starring roles in Ludo (2020), Monica, O My Darling (2022), Bheed (2023), Srikanth (2024) and he won the Filmfare Award for Best Actor for starring as a closeted gay man in Badhaai Do (2022). Following a series of commercial failures, he had his highest-grossing release in the sequel Stree 2 (2024). Rao is married to actress Patralekha Paul.