From Small-town Beginnings to Bollywood Stardom: Read the tale of Grit and Triumph

I grew up in Panna, a small city in Madhya Pradesh. My father passed away when I was a child, leaving my mother with five kids to raise. She sold her jewellery and invested the money in restructuring our home in the city's centre. We rented out some rooms and spaces as local shops, and the rent helped us manage our livelihood. We also kept chickens and earned some extra money selling eggs.

My grandfather was a talented tabla player, and I followed in his footsteps by learning tabla and classical songs from Late Ram Prasad Mishra at Saraswati Sangeet Vidya Mandir. Guruji didn't charge us fees because he knew our family well. My grandmother used to tie a Rakhi to him.

My journey into theatre began with IPTA when they needed someone to play the Dholak. One day, Hitendra, our senior actor, fell ill, so I stepped in to play a role in a play called 'Gili Gili Fu' by Shri Devesh Mishra. My performance was excellent, and I got to play the character again.

I wasn't the best student, but I was a naughty kid. We used to scare people at night by wearing long coats and making strange noises, which started a ghost rumour in our city. Watching films in theatres was a luxury, so we made up our stories about movies based on their posters and stills.

We also organised plays in our locality, charging groceries as tickets and making delicious food for a mini-feast. These activities strengthened my skills as an actor. My wife, Kiran, helped me graduate and join NSD, but I soon realised that theatre wasn't financially sustainable in Panna, so I moved to Mumbai.

Mumbai was a challenge at first. I stayed with my older sister for a while. Then, I moved in with several others in a small room. We cooked what we could, walked long distances to save money, and dealt with the heat and humidity. Sometimes, while returning, we used to get sore legs. But at that point, the struggle didn’t feel much among the group of friends with a common goal of breaking into the cinematic world.

My first break in Bollywood came with Ram Gopal Verma's Agyaat. I heard about a role that suited me, and through a friend, I arranged a meeting with Ram sir. Knowing he didn't do auditions, I dressed up as the character I wanted to play. At first, the security guard stopped me because of my shabby clothes, but my friend got me inside. My strategy worked—I got the part within five minutes of leaving the meeting. Since then, I haven't looked back.

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