‘Who is this Rajkummar Rao?’ Ujjwal Nikam didn’t know who the actor was before Prahaar
Here's the latest update from the Bollywood world:
Rajkummar Rao’s next movie is the highly anticipated Prahaar: The Untold Story of Ujjwal Nikam, based on the life of Ujjwal Nikam , who represented the prosecution in the trial of Ajmal Kasab, the lone surviving terrorist of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks. During a recent interaction, Nikam opened up that he did not know who Rajkummar Rao was when the movie's director Avinash Arun first suggested the star’s name to play him on the big screen.
Adding to this, Rajkummar Rao plays former public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam in Prahaar. (Anshuman Poyrekar/HT Photo) Ujjwal Nikam didn’t know who Rajkummar Rao was In conversation with NDTV, Ujjwal Nikam shared that when Avinash Arun informed him that Rajkummar Rao would play his role in Prahaar, he immediately asked him one question: “Avinash ji, who is this Rajkummar?”
Meanwhile, Avinash then told Nikam about Rajkummar Rao’s career and his performances. After hearing the director praise Rajkummar, Nikam visited the movie’s set one day to watch the shoot. He was impressed after seeing the star perform and meeting him in person.
Notably, “He is down-to-earth and simple. He doesn't have that star tantrum. He's a real star,” Nikam shared while praising Rajkummar during the interview. He also complimented the director for choosing the right star to portray him on screen.
As per the latest buzz, Rajkummar, meanwhile, has shared that he did not spend time with Nikam before the shoot and instead watched his videos to prepare for the role.
In further updates, In another interaction with India Today, Nikam shared the conditions he had put before the makers before allowing them to make a movie about a significant phase of his career and life. He shared he wanted the story to remain grounded in reality, without glorifying any of the people involved in the legal proceedings.
On top of that, He shared, “My first condition was that there should be no glorification of any character, including myself. I also told them to use real names of all the characters who had participated in this legal proceeding and the makers took no objection certificate from the concerned people, including the judge, Mr Madan Laxmandas Tahaliyani.”
Prahaar: The Untold Story of Ujjwal Nikam is an soon-to-release courtroom drama produced by Dinesh Vijan under Maddock Films. Rajkummar Rao plays Ujjwal Nikam.The movie also stars Wamiqa Gabbi, Jaideep Ahlawat, Sikandar Kher and Marathi star Lalit Prabhakar, who plays Ajmal Kasab. The movie is scheduled to rollout in theatres on October 16, 2026.
Source: Hindustan Times