'...with my art form...'
'This was my only dream since I was a kid. I worked very hard for it and am still working very hard to grow with every film.'
'I am so grateful that I get to live my dream every day.'
Now that Producer Karan Johar and Director Sharan Sharma's Mr & Mrs Mahi is doing well, its leading man Rajkummar Rao took time off the analyse the film's success.
"We all love cricket and cinema in our country. And Mahi has both to offer," Raj says.
"Like all of us I also love cricket. I've grown up in Gurgaon and cricket has been a very integral part of my upbringing. Every day post school two hours were dedicated to gully cricket and I was a decent player."
Raj had to go through some professional cricket training for the film. "Gully cricket and professional cricket are two very different things. I had to go through some sessions to get a knack of the technical aspect of the game and then to be around coaches to observe them, their style and body language.
"But for me my character is going through his own internal journey throughout the film," he says.
"Sharan Sharma is a phenomenal film-maker and he gave me all the freedom to explore my character Mahendra. We built him together from scratch."
Raj loved working with Janhvi Kapoor after Roohi.
"She is hungry for good parts and an actor who is ready to push herself every time. We were always there for each other during the filming. I've seen her growth since her first film, and she is growing with every film."
Raj reveals he loves playing fictional and real characters. "Both have their own kind of preparation process, but I enjoy playing both. I love playing Mr Mahi as much as I love playing Vicky from Stree. I am in love with my art form.
"This was my only dream since I was a kid and I worked very hard for it. I am still working very hard to grow with every film and am so grateful that I get to live my dream every day. God has been really kind to me."
Raj had a hit last month. "In my opinion the inspiring story of Srikanth really connected well with the audience and the hard work that we had put in to make this story also worked I guess."
"We love watching true stories on screen and what Srikanth has achieved in life makes it highly inspiring for everyone to experience," he says.
"Mr & Mrs Mahi is very close to my heart. It's a beautiful story about relationships and about dreams, aspirations, success, failures, egos."
"There is something for everyone in this film. We have made a good film and a film about all of us."
